Delicious Dark: The Story of Morrighan Capilla
by CharlotteBlackwood
Summary: Morrighan Capilla, a college student from California, wakes up to find herself in the world of Harry Potter, the summer of 1995. With no known way of getting back, can she survive this war, or will she change the course of events? SB/OC, some FW/OC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I own nothing. La-di-da. This is unrelated to my other stories, and even though it's someone falling into the stories, I plan to FOR THE FIRST TIME change major plot factors, so I promise surprises along the way. Cheers. – J**

It had been a typical day in the Capilla household. Mr. Capilla went to work at the hospital. Mrs. Capilla ran errands, made dinner, and did housework. Alexandra Capilla did some online coursework and word searches. Mark and Nathan Capilla went to a pool party, piano lessons, and came home to play some tennis. Morrighan Capilla did a bit of packing, played video games, and read her favorite book, _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_, once again. Sometime after dinner, Monica Capilla called to report on her first day of work, her husband's first day on the job hunt, and their daughter's first day at preschool.

After dinner, Morrighan took a long bath, ran over a list of things still needing to be packed, and went to bed. If she dreamt of anything, she did not remember it when she woke up. Indeed, nothing worth mentioning happened until she awoke, because she did not wake in her own bed, but on a rather old carpet in an eerily familiar hallway she had never seen before in her life.

Voices could be heard from down the stairwell. Forgetting she was topless - for Morrighan had gotten into the habit of sleeping topless when she went off to college the year before – she got to her feet and crept down the stairwell, toward the voices.

"Think you can do the guard, Remus? He knows and trusts you," said a gruff voice as she drew closer.

Remus? As in Remus Lupin?

"Of course," said a tired voice. "Tonks, have you sent his relatives the diversion?"

Tonks? Remus?

Morrighan shouldn't have done I, but that could have been said of many things in her life.

Perhaps not fully aware that she had woken up and that this was not, in fact, a dream, she walked right into the kitchen basement to find a fair number of eyes turn to her with surprised, confused, and embarrassed expressions. They blinked at her. She blinked back, suddenly acutely aware that she was not dreaming. A handsome mane near the middle of the table broke the silence.

"Albus?"

The incredibly elderly man at the head of the table - who Morrighan recognized by description as Albus Dumbledore - stood swiftly and ushered her back up the stairs ahead of him. He grabbed a sweater that had been on the counter as he went. When they reached the top of the stairs, he handed it to her, alerting to her toplessness.

"Oh, gosh, I'm so sorry," she muttered, embarrassed, pulling the sweater on hastily.

"Who are you," he said in a kind but serious tone, "and how did you get here?"

"My name is Morrighan Capilla," she said nervously, "and I don't know how I got here. I mean, I fell asleep in my bed and I woke up on the floor in a world that only exists in books."

He frowned.

"Excuse me?"

"Where I'm from," she explained slowly, considering her words carefully, "everything about your world is in a seven-book series following Harry Potter from ages eleven to seventeen in his ongoing struggles with Voldemort. But it's fiction. I've read it all so many times, sir, I can tell you almost anything to prove it."

Still frowning, he said, "How much of the meeting did you hear?"

"Just what Remus and Moody just said, Professor," she said honestly, "but this must be the meeting before they go with Tonks, Kingsley, Dedalus, Mr. Doge, Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore, and Hestia Jones to rescue Harry from his relatives so he can away his court date here at Grimmauld Place."

"You're from America?" he asked, seemingly satisfied. "How old are you?"

"From California, yes," she replied. "I'm nearly twenty."

"Stay right here," he ordered. He retreated briefly down the stairs and returned with the handsome man and a kindly redheaded woman in shabby robes. "Molly, Sirius, this is Miss Morrighan Capilla. She will be staying with us until further notice. I will explain more about her circumstances at a later time. For now, we need to see that she is properly accommodated."

"We can squeeze her in with Ginny and Hermione," said Moly Weasley shrewdly as she circled Morrighan appraisingly. "She's a bit small for Ginny's things. Perhaps Hermione could loan her some clothes until we have more permanent arrangements."

"Sounds fine," said Sirius Black. "I don't suppose you've got any gold, Morrighan?"

"N-no," she gasped, realizing she had nothing with her but a pair of flimsy pajama shorts and underwear.

"If you need anything, you can use mine. Merlin knows I've got more than I know what to do with."

"Excellent," said Albus. "Tomorrow I think Tonks and Miss Granger should take her into London for some shopping, both for Muggle clothes and other things. Sirius, I'd like you to be in charge of her magical education. I think between yourself and Remus the basics should be simple enough to cover. Severus will squeeze in a few Potions lessons on holidays. Consider her care your assignment until we can clear your name, Sirius."

"Of course," said Sirius, who seemed suddenly happier, as if he'd just been granted some essential task.

"But," Morrighan protested, "I don't think I need magical education, sir. I don't think I'm a witch."

Albus gave her a kindly smile and said, "Miss Capillo, I think I'm a fairly good judge of magical ability, and I've certainly had more practice at it than you have. Believe me when I say you are a witch, and a rather powerful one at that. Now, Molly, I must return to the meeting. Could you see to it that Miss Capilla has a place to sleep for the night?"

It wasn't long before Morrighan found herself being ushered up more stairs to a room with two sleeping girls in it. There was no third bed, but Molly conjured a cot in the corner and told her where the nearest bathroom was before whispering a hasty, but kind, good night and rushing back to the meeting. Morrighan was asleep again as soon as her head hit the pillow.

She awoke the following morning with two pairs of brown eyes ogling at her as she looked up at an unfamiliar ceiling. One girl had bushy brown hair, the other was a slender, tall redhead. Both were quite pretty.

"Um, good morning," Morrighan mumbled sleepily as she sat up and stretched.

"We don't mean to be rude or anything," said the bushy one sharply, "but who are you?"

"Morrighan Capilla," she said in that automatic way one spits out one's own name when introducing oneself that makes it sound foreign to one's ears.

"But who _are_ you?" pressed the tall one.

Morrighan then proceeded to explain, as she had to Albus Dumbledore the night before, who she was, how she had no idea how she had got there, and everything that had occurred since she had arrived. The girls were a proper audience, being acceptably bewildered and sympathetic, as well as excited to have another female resident.

"Oh good, you girls are up," said Molly when she entered. "It's time for breakfast. Tonks should be here to get you two soon, Hermione, Morrighan. You'd better get dressed and come on down."

Ginny threw on a pair of jeans and black t-shirt, combed her hair, and was out the door in seconds. Hermione put on a plaid dress, threw her hair into something like braids, and then turned to the task of readying Morrighan.

"Now, let's see. That red hair will make things interesting. We don't want you to wear something that clashes. Oh, here we go."

Hermione handed her a plain gray t-shirt and a pair of boyfriend jeans. Morrighan would never have picked something so dull on her own accord, but she was simply grateful to have clothes. Borrowing a clip from Hermione, Morrighan grabbed couple of strands of hair that were framing her face and pinned them back. Then Hermione led her down to the kitchen for breakfast.

The kitchen was already quite full. Remus and Sirius were sipping tea at one end of the table while Ginny and three redheaded boys were scarfing down sausages at the other end. A woman Morrighan didn't recognize but assumed was Tonks was leaning against the counter with her nose in a newspaper. Molly was at the stove, making more sausages.

"Wotcher," said Tonks brightly as Hermione and Morrighan entered. "Albus explained everything, told me exactly what we need to get you, and said the money's been taken care of."

"Bill's been instructed to give you a sizable amount of gold from my vault," said Sirius with a warm smile. "You spend as much gold as you like, and if you run out, Bill can get you more."

Morrighan couldn't believe it. She hadn't been poor in her own world, but with so many kids, three of them in college, her family had been watching their pennies for quite some time. Even when they had been freer with their money, she had never been able to spend as much as she wanted.

She smiled at him shyly, unsure of what to say, and took a seat beside one of the twins, who immediately pushed the sausage and eggs toward her before offering his hand.

"George," he said brightly.

"Morrighan," she replied as she took his hand and shook it firmly. The other redheaded boys introduced themselves as Fred and Ron as she quickly served herself eggs and sausage. She and Hermione ate swiftly, said their goodbyes, and followed Tonks out onto the street. They walked to Diagon Alley, which wasn't far, and Tonks led the other girls up the marvelous street to the large, white marble building that Morrighan knew was Gringotts. They had barely gotten inside when they were assailed by yet another redhead, this one not bothering to introduce himself, but merely handing Tonks a large money bag and saying a quick hello before returning to work.

"First things first," said Tonks. "We need to get you a bag that can call all your things. There may be three of us, but that list isn't short."

She wasn't kidding. Once they bought a bag with an undetectable extension charm, they proceeded to buy six sets of everyday robes (two black and four in various shades of blue and purple), thirty-six books (all of which were deemed necessary by Hermione after reviewing the list of subjects Morrighan would cover), a cauldron, potions ingredients, a telescope, various things Hermione insisted Morrighan would need for Potions, an owl (because Tonks couldn't resist spending Sirius's money) and lastly, a wand (ebony and dragon heartstring, nine-and-a-half inches).

As they sat in front of Florean Fortescue's and ate the strawberry ice cream Tonks had gotten for them while Hermione and Morrighan changed the rest of the half-empty moneybag to Muggle money, Morrighan turned the wand over in her hands reverently.

"Feels wonderful, doesn't it?" said Hermione with a kind smile.

She, of course, knew what it felt like to be told she could do magic after years of thinking it didn't exist. It was surreal, all of it, and Morrighan didn't really understand what had occurred until Ollivander put the ebony wand in her hand. She couldn't explain it.

"Fourteen outfits and basic necessities is what Albus has down for Muggle London," said Tonks, eyeing the instructions she had been given. "Once we know your sizing and such we can always get you more, but he doesn't want you leaving headquarters, considering your circumstances. Right. To the mall!"

If Morrighan had thought Tonks had gone overboard in the Wizarding shops, it was nothing on the Muggle ones. After Tonks helped her pick out fourteen sets of "fun" underwear (on Tonks's orders; Morrighan had never owned "fun" underwear before) and bras, they bought her fourteen outfits, five pairs of shoes, various hair products, hair elastics, a flat-iron (which Tonks said was a task better not attempted with a wand), necessary make-up, some less-than necessary make-up, shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, cleanser, deodorant, lotion, and tampons. Finally, Tonks declared them finished, although they hadn't spent all the money. Morrighan suspected that Tonks just didn't want to be late for meeting up to get Harry.

The meeting was underway when they arrived back. Dumbledore must have explained Morrighan's situation, because although the Order members gave her curious and interested looks, they didn't seem surprised to see her. Sirius even smiled at her and pulled out the chair beside him for her. Within minutes, Tonks left with the rest of the Advance Guard to pick up Harry Potter from Privet Drive.

"Did you spend all the money, love?" Sirius whispered into Morrighan's ear as Dumbledore left, allowing Arthur to take over the particulars of the meeting. The feel of his breath on her ear, tickling the sensitive skin, very nearly made Morrighan shudder. It felt too good to be allowed.

She shook her head and hissed, "Tonks tried, but she ran out of ideas."

He chuckled lowly and breathed, "I thought she might have a good go of that. You do look spectacular."

She murmured her thanks and felt the blush creeping into her cheeks. Sure, he was much older than her, but he wasn't quite old enough to be her father… He was also incredibly beautiful, despite the years spent wasting away in Azkaban. He clearly had been taking better care of himself since Voldemort's return, working out, perhaps, eating plenty, bathing regularly…. The thought of him in warm, soapy tub crossed Morrighan's mind and she bit her lip to hold in the sigh that threatened to betray the nature of her thoughts. She was in a meeting. That just wouldn't do.

"Miss Capilla," said Arthur gently, "in your book, does You-Know-Who acquire the prophecy?"

"No," she said, feeling a little uncomfortable about all of the eyes being on her. "But in the movie…"

Sirius barked with laughter at her pathetic attempt at a joke, but the others around the table didn't seem to understand. Well, Snape seemed to understand, but his expression did not change: He had been looking at her with icy indifference since Arthur Weasley had addressed her.

"It's okay, I'm bad at making jokes in all dimensions, it seems like," she said awkwardly, looking down at her hands, but Sirius smirked and nudged her playfully with his elbow, shaking his head. He, at least, seemed to find her entertaining. That was probably a good thing, considering they had been sentenced to spending all of their free time in this house together.

The meeting went on for quite a while, mostly not pertaining to her. Occasionally they would ask her if they were on the right track, and she would tell them that, yes, everything they were talking about seemed to fit with the plot in which Voldemort was defeated. Finally, she could hear movement upstairs in the hall. Harry had arrived.

Unfortunately, Morrighan had to wait to catch a glimpse of him, as the meeting went on for quite a while longer. When it finally ended and Snape had left Sirius engaged Morrighan in a discussion about what cleaning there was to be done in the house. Suddenly, there was a crash on the floor above.

"_Tonks!_" came Molly's voice from the stairs.

"I'm sorry!" wailed Tonks. "It's that stupid umbrella stand, that's the second time I've tripped over–"

And the screeching began not long after.

"_Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers_–"

Sirius and Morrighan exchanged exasperated expressions before rushing up the stairs to help close the portrait of his crazed mother.

"Shut up, you horrible old hag, shut UP!" yelled Sirius as they rushed up and took either curtain, attempting to forced them closed.

"_Yoooou!_" she wailed at him. "_Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh!_"

"I said – shut – UP!" he roared back, and he and Morrighan managed to close the curtains with great effort. As the screams dissipated, Sirius panted and gave Morrighan a pat on the back, sweeping a strand of his gleaming black hair out of his face as he turned to the young newcomers.

"Hello, Harry," he said grimly, "I see you've met my mother."

"Your–?"

"His mother, yeah," said Morrighan with a smile. "We haven't met. My name is Morrighan Capilla."

"Yeah, hey," said Harry, shaking her hand distractedly. "Hermione told me about you, crazy story. What is a portrait of your mother doing here, Sirius?"

"Hasn't anyone told you? This was my parents' house," said Sirius. "But I'm the last black left, so it's mine now. I offered it to Dumbledore for headquarters – it's where Morrighan and I will be hanging out while the rest of you are off leading interesting and important lives."

She had expected to hear bitterness in his voice, but it was full of amusement instead: He was making jokes. Perhaps the prospect of having a fellow prisoner in his least favorite house had alleviated some of his angst for the time being. She and Sirius led the way down to the kitchen.

Molly cleared her throat at Bill and Arthur, who were huddled at the end of the table, still going over building plans of the Ministry.

"Harry!" said Arthur, rushing forward to shake Harry's hand. "Good to see you!"

Bill began to gather up the building plans as he said, "Journey all right, Harry? Mad-Eye didn't make you come via Greenland, then?"

"He tried," said Tonks, who was hurrying forward to help Bill, but managed to knock a candle over right onto the last parchment. "Oh, no – sorry–"

"Here, dear," said Molly sharply, fixing the parchment and sticking the parchment into Bill's arms, admonishing him. "This sort of thing ought to be cleared away promptly at the end of meetings."

Bill vanished the parchments.

"Sit down, Harry," said Sirius. "You've met Mundungus, haven't you?"

"Some'n say m' name?" Mundungus muttered, jerking awake. "I 'gree with Sirius…"

Ginny giggled.

"The meeting's over," said Morrighan testily, not liking Mundungus very much. "Harry's here, you lump."

"Eh?" muttered Mundungus, peering up at Harry. "Blimey, so 'e 'as. Yeah… you all right, 'arry?"

"Yeah," said Harry.

Mundungus began to fidget and prepare his pipe for smoking, grunting from behind the smoke, "Ow you a 'pology."

"For the last time, Mundungus," cried Molly, "will you please not smoke that thing in the kitchen, especially not when we're about to eat!"

"Ah. Right. Sorry, Molly."

The smoke vanished as the pipe was replaced in its spot in his coat.

"And if you want dinner before midnight I'll need a hand," Molly said to no one in particular. "No, you can stay where you are, Harry, you've had a long journey, and don't you think of getting up, Morrighan, dear, you must be exhausted–"

"What I can I do Molly?" said Tonks eagerly.

"Er – no, it's all right, Tonks, you have a rest too, you've done enough today–"

"No, no, I want to help!" cried Tonks, knocking a chair over as she went to help Ginny gather silverware.

Soon, only Morrighan, Sirius, Mundungus, and Harry were left at the table as the rest of the room busied themselves with dinner.

"Seen old Figgy since?" Mundungus asked Harry.

"No," Harry said almost bitterly, "I haven't seen anyone."

"See, I wouldn' 'ave left, but I 'ad a business opportunity–"

The ugliest ginger cat Morrighan had ever laid eyes on bounded onto Sirius's lap, stretching his body out to cover both Sirius and Morrighan's laps, forcing them to move their chairs closer together so that Crookshanks didn't fall between them. Sirius began to scratch Crookshanks behind the ears absently as he turned to Harry.

"Had a good summer so far?"

"No, it's been lousy," said Harry.

Morrighan watched Sirius grin a little and shook her head, exasperated.

"Sirius wishes he was you," she muttered. "He envies your little experience in the alleyway."

"_What?_" said Harry.

"A deadly struggle for my soul would have broken the monotony nicely," Sirius said with a little smirk. "You think you've had it bad, at least you've been able to get out and about, stretch your legs, get into a few fights… I've been stuck inside for a month."

"How come?"

"Because the Ministry's still after me, and Voldemort will know all about me being an Animagus by now, Wormtail will have told him, so my big disguise is useless. There's not much I can do for the Order of the Phoenix… or so Dumbledore feels, but I guess now I've got Morrighan to keep me company in my little personal hell, so we can have some fun."

"At least you know what's been going on," muttered Harry.

"Oh yeah," said Sirius sarcastically. "Listening to Snape's reports, having to take all his snide hints that he's out there risking his life while I'm sat on my backside here having a nice comfortable time… asking me how the cleaning's going–"

"What cleaning?"

"Making this place livable," said Morrighan, wincing as Crookshanks's bottlebrush tail flicked in her face. "It hasn't been lived in for quite a while, minus Kreacher, but he's not all there these days–"

"Sirius?" said Mundungus, looking closely at a goblet. "This solid silver, mate?"

"Yes," said Sirius bitterly, "Finest fifteenth century goblin-wrought silver, embossed with the Black family crest."

"That'd come off, thought," muttered Mundungus.

"Fred – George – NO, JUST CARRY THEM!" Molly shrieked.

Morrighan, knowing what was coming, tackled Sirius to the ground as Harry and Mundungus flew away from the table moments later. A hot cauldron of stew skidded across the table, butterbeer splashed all over the floor, and a large bread knife landed point down right where Sirius's hand had been seconds before.

"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE! THERE WAS NO NEED – I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS – JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY TINY LITTLE THING!"

"We were just trying to save a bit of time!" said Fred, rushing forward to extract the bread knife. "Sorry Sirius, mate, Morrighan – didn't mean to–"

Morrighan, Harry, and Sirius were all laughing. Sirius helped Morrighan to her feet, giving her a smile as she turned to the nervous looking Fred.

Arthur put the stew where it had been intended to land.

"Boys, your mother's right, you're supposed to show a sense of responsibility now that you've come of age–"

" – none of your brothers caused this sort of trouble! Bill didn't feel the need to Apparate every few feet! Charlie didn't Charm everything he met! Percy–"

Though Morrighan hadn't been around for the problems with Percy, she knew exactly why Molly had frozen, why there was such awkwardness in the air around her. Percy was a piece of work.

"Let's eat," said Bill.

"It looks wonderful, Molly," Remus said while dishing up stew to those around him.

There was silence as the kitchen became instantly full of mouths that were full of stew. Morrighan had never been one for stew, but Molly knew how to make it with all the good things about stew, and none of the bad ones. It was truly one of the best things she had ever tasted.

Molly turned to Sirius.

"I've been meaning to tell you, there's something trapped in that writing desk in the drawing room, it keeps rattling and shaking. Of course, it could just be boggart, but I thought we ought to ask Alastor to have a look at it before we let it out."

"Whatever you like," said Sirius with an indifferent shrug, helping himself to more stew.

"The curtains are full of doxies too. I thought we might try and tackle them tomorrow."

"That sounds like a great idea, Molly," said Morrighan quickly. "That's something I can help with, right?"

"Oh, well, I suppose, dear," said Molly, taken aback. "If you'd really like to. It's not very exciting."

"No, I'd really like to help," Morrighan insisted. "I've never seen a doxy before."

Obviously.

Tonks was down the table, entertaining with her Metamorph abilities. What was catching Morrighan's attention, however, was a conversation occurring between Arthur, Bill, and Remus.

"They're not giving anything away yet," said Bill. "I still can't work out whether they believe he's back or not. 'Course they might prefer not to take sides at all. Keep out of it."

"I'm sure they'd never got over to You-Know-Who," said Arthur solemnly. "They've suffered losses too. Remember that goblin family he murdered last time, somewhere near Nottingham?"

"I think it depends on what they're offered," said Remus. "And I'm not talking about gold; if they're offered freedoms we've been denying them for centuries they're going to be tempted. Have you still not had any luck with Ragnok, Bill?"

"He's feeling pretty anti-wizard at the moment," said Bill. "He hasn't stopped raging about the Bagman business, he reckons the Ministry did a cover-up, those goblins never go their gold from him, you know–"

Laughs erupted from where the twins, Ron, and Mundungus were that covered Bill's sentence.

"… and then," Mundungus said through his laughter, "and then, if you'll believe it, 'e says to me, 'e syas, ''ere, Dung, where didja get all them toads from? 'Cos some son of a Bludger's goen and nicked all mine!' And I says 'Nicked all your toads, Will, what next? So you'll be wanting some more, then?' And if you'll believe me, lads, the gormless gargoyle buys all 'is own toads back orf me for twice what 'e paid in the first place–"

"I don't think we need to hear any more of your business dealings, thank you very much, Mundungus," said Molly sharply.

"Beg pardon, Molly. But really, you know, Will nicked 'em orf Warty Harris in the first place so I wasn't really doing nothing wrong–"

"I don't know where you learned about right and wrong, Mundungus, but you seem to have missed a few crucial lessons," Molly said coldly.

Fred and George took long drinks of butterbeer; George was hiccupping and Fred winked at Morrighan, who noticed that her cheeks got curiously flushed when he did so. Molly threw a dirty look at Sirius as she got up to get dessert.

"Molly doesn't approve of Mundungus," Sirius muttered to Harry across Morrighan.

"How come he's in the Order?" Harry whispered back.

"He's useful," Sirius said softly. "Knows all the crooks – well, he would, seeing as he's one himself. But he's also very loyal to Dumbledore, who helped him out of a tight spot once. It pays to have someone like Dung around, he hears things we don't. But Molly thinks inviting him to stay for dinner is going too far. She hasn't forgiven him for slipping off duty when he was supposed to be tailing you."

When the rhubarb crumble and custard was all consumed and everyone was lulled into contented, over-stuffed quiet, Molly yawned, "Nearly time for bed, I think."

"Not just yet, Molly," said Sirius, pushing away his plate and looking at Harry, scooting closer to Morrighan in the process. "You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking question about Voldemort."

There were no lazy faces around the table now. Everyone's faces were sharp with anticipation, and Remus narrowed his eyes at Sirius, as if trying to communicate without speaking.

"I did!" Harry cried. "I asked Ron and Hermione but they said we're not allowed in the Order, so–"

"And they're quite right," said Molly sharply. "You're too young."

"Maybe I'm new, but it seems to me that doesn't mean he can't ask," said Morrighan softly, earning her an approving smile from Sirius. "I mean, he's been stuck with those Muggles for a month. I think he has a right to ask…"

"Hang on!" cried George.

"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" said Fred

"_We've_ been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven't told us a single stinking thing!" said George.

"'_You're too young, you're not in the Order_,'" said Fred, mimicking his mother's voice quite well. "Harry's not even of age!"

"It's not my fault you haven't been told what the Order's doing," said Sirius. "That's your parents' decision. Harry, on the other hand–"

"It's not down to you to decide what's good for Harry!" said Molly sternly. Her face was dangerous and angry, and Morrighan found herself a little frightened. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"

"Which bit?" said Sirius politely, but Morrighan could feel him tensing beside her.

"The bit about not telling Harry more than he _needs to know_," said Molly.

"I don't intend to tell him more than he _needs to know_, Molly. But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back he has more right than most to–"

"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix! He's only fifteen and–"

" – and he's dealt with as much as anyone at this table," said Morrighan softly, "and more than I have, certainly–"

"No one's denying what he's done, dear!" said Molly indignantly. "But he's still–"

"He's not a child!" said Sirius.

"He's not an adult, either!" said Molly. "He's not _James_, Sirius!"

"I'm perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Molly," said Sirius.

"I'm not sure you are!" said Molly. "Sometimes, the way you talk about him, it's as though you think you've got your best friend back!"

"What's wrong with that?" said Harry.

"What's wrong, Harry, is that you are _not_ your father, however much you might look like him!" said Molly, not taking her eyes from Sirius. "You are still at school and adults responsible for you should not forget it!"

"Meaning I'm an irresponsible godfather?" demanded Sirius.

"Meaning you've been known to act rashly, Sirius which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and–"

"Please, leave Dumbledore's instructions out of this," said Morrighan firmly, putting her hand on Sirius's arm as he tensed.

"Arthur!" cried Molly, turning to her husband. "Arthur, back me up!"

Arthur delayed his answer, cleaning his glasses, not looking at his wife. Then he said, "Dumbledore knows the position has changed, Molly. He accepts that Harry will have to be filled in to a certain extent now that he is staying at headquarters–"

"Yes, but there's a difference between that and inviting him to ask whatever he likes!"

"Personally," said Lupin softly, turning away from Sirius and looking at Molly, who was regarding him with desperation, "I think it better that Harry gets the facts – not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture – from us, rather than a garbled version from… others."

Morrighan smirked slightly, catching Fred's eye as she thought of the Extendable Ears she knew they had developed. He smirked back unabashedly.

"Well," said Molly, "well… I can see I'm going to be overruled. I'll just say this: Dumbledore must have had his reasons for not wanting Harry to know too much, and speaking as someone who has got Harry's best interests at heart–"

"He's not your son," said Sirius softly.

"He's as good as," said Molly harshly. "Who else has he got?"

"He's got me!"

"Yes. The thing is, it's been rather difficult for you to look after him while you've been locked up in Azkaban, hasn't it?"

Sirius started to rise, freezing when Morrighan squeezed his arm tightly.

"Molly, you're not the only person at this table who cares about Harry," said Remus. "Sirius, sit _down_."

Sirius slowly sank back into his chair. Morrighan made to remove her hand, but to her surprise, his other hand covered it and held it tightly to his arm, as if asking her to continue to restrain him, to keep him calm.

"I think harry ought to be allowed a say in this," Remus said. "He's old enough to decide for himself."

"I want to know what's been going on," Harry said quickly and eagerly.

"Very well," said Molly, her voice weak and upset. "Ginny – Ron – Hermione – Fred – George – I want you out of this kitchen, now."

"We're of age!" Fred and George cried.

"If Harry's allowed, why can't I?" protested Ron.

"Mum, I _want_ to!" wailed Ginny.

"NO!" shouted Molly. "I absolutely forbid–"

"Molly, you can't stop Fred and George," said Arthur reasonably. "They _are_ of age–"

"They're still at school–"

"But they're legally adults now," said Arthur, tired.

"I – oh, all right then, Fred and George can stay, but Ron–"

"Harry'll tell me and Hermione everything you can say anyway!" said Ron. "Won't – won't you?"

"'Course I will," Harry said.

"Fine!" shouted Molly. "Fine! Ginny – BED!"

Ginny kicked, screamed, and pouted her way all the way out the door and up the stairs and Mrs. Black's portrait began to shriek. Remus got up and silenced it. When he returned, Sirius broke the awkwardness.

"Okay, Harry… what do you want to know?"

"Where's Voldemort? What's he doing? I've been trying to watch the Muggle news, and there hasn't been anything that looks like him yet, no funny deaths or anything–"

"That's because there haven't been any suspicious deaths yet, not as far as we know, anyway… And we know quite a lot."

"More than he thinks we do, anyway," added Remus.

"How come he's stopped killing people?" Harry asked.

"Because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself," Morrighan said softly. "Fudge is conveniently ignoring his return, which he managed to mess up. It wouldn't be safe for him to come out now."

"Or rather, you messed it up for him," said Remus with a smile.

"How?" asked Harry.

"You weren't supposed to survive!" said Sirius. "Nobody apart from his Death Eaters was supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness."

"And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore," added Remus. "And you made sure Dumbledore knew at once."

"How has that helped?" Harry asked.

"Are you kidding?" laughed Bill. "Dumbledore was the only one You-Know-Who was ever scared of!"

"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," said Sirius.

"So what's the Order been doing?" said Harry.

"Working as hard as we can to make sure Voldemort can't carry out his plans," said Sirius.

"How d'you know what his plans are?" asked Harry.

"Dumbledore's got a shrewd idea," said Remus, "and Dumbledore's shrewd ideas normally turn out to be accurate."

"So what does Dumbledore reckon he's planning?"

"Well, he's rebuilding his army," said Morrighan softly, drawing attention to herself and looking down at her hands as she spoke. "Not just his Death Eaters, but those who are forced by fear or magic into following him, and Dark creatures, of course. You heard about the giants from Hagrid, but that's far from all. You've seen what's left of the Death Eaters, there's no taking anything over with that small of a group."

"So you're trying to stop him getting more followers?"

"We're doing our best," said Lupin.

"How?"

"Well, the main this is to try and convince as many people as possible that You-Know-Who really has returned, to put them on their guard," said Bill. "It's proving tricky, though."

"Why?"

"Because of the Ministry's attitude," said Tonks. "You saw Cornelius Fudge after You-Know-Who came back, Harry. Well, he hasn't shifted his position at all. He's absolutely refusing to believe it's happened."

"But why?" said Harry. "Why's he being so stupid? If Dumbledore–"

"Ah, well, you've put your finger on the problem," said Arthur. "_Dumbledore_."

"Fudge is frightened of him, you see," said Tonks.

"Frightened of Dumbledore?" asked Harry.

"Frightened of what he's up to," said Arthur. "You see, Fudge thinks Dumbledore's plotting to overthrow him. He thinks Dumbledore wants to be Minister of Magic."

"But Dumbledore doesn't want–"

"Of course he doesn't," agreed Arthur. "He's never wanted the Minister's job, even though a lot of people wanted him to take it when Millicent Bagnold retired. Fudge came to power instead, but he's never quite forgotten how much popular support Dumbledore had, even though Dumbledore never applied for the job."

"Deep down, Fudge knows Dumbledore's much cleverer than he is, a much more powerful wizard, and in the early days of his Ministry he was forever asking Dumbledore for help and advice," said Remus. "But it seems that he's become fond of power now, and much more confident. He loves being Minister of Magic, and he's managed to convince himself that he's the clever one and Dumbledore's simply stirring up trouble for the sake of it."

"How can he think that?" cried Harry. "How can he think Dumbledore would just make it all up – that _I'd_ make it all up?"

"Because accepting Voldemort's back would mean trouble like the Ministry hasn't had to cope with for nearly fourteen years," spat Sirius. "Fudge just can't bring himself to face it. It's so much more comfortable to convince himself Dumbledore's lying to destabilize him."

"You see the problem," said Remus. "While the Ministry insists there is nothing to fear from Voldemort, it's hard to convince people he's back, especially as they really don't want to believe it in the first place. What's more, the Ministry's leaning heavily on the _Daily Prophet_ not to report any of what they're calling Dumbledore's rumor-mongering, so most of the Wizarding community are completely unaware anything's happened, and that makes them easy targets for the Death Eaters if they're using the Imperius Curse."

"But you're telling people, aren't you?" said Harry, looking around at the Order Members at the table. "You're letting people know he's back?"

The all smiled sadly at each other.

"Well, as Sirius is supposed to be a crazed mass murderer and the Ministry's got a massive price on his head and I'm not even supposed to exist," Morrighan drawled humorlessly, "we can't even leave the house, much less start a campaign of truth."

"And I'm not a very popular dinner guest with most of the community," said Remus. "It's an occupational hazard of being a werewolf."

"Tonks and Arthur would lose their jobs at the Ministry if they started shooting their mouths off," said Sirius, "and it's very important for us to have spies inside the Ministry, because you can bet Voldemort will have them."

"We've managed to convince a couple of people, though," said Arthur. "Tonks here, for one – she's too young to have been in the Order of the Phoenix last time, and having Aurors on our side is a huge advantage – Kingsley Shacklebolt's been a real asset too. He's in charge of the hunt for Sirius, so he's been feeding the Ministry information that Sirius is in Tibet."

"But if none of you's putting the news out that Voldemort's back–" Harry began.

"Who said none of us was putting the news out?" laughed Sirius. "Why d'you think Dumbledore's in so much trouble?"

"What d'you mean?"

"They're trying to discredit him," said Lupin. "Didn't you see the _Daily Prophet_ last week? They reported that he'd been voted out of the Chairmanship of the international Confederation of Wizards because he's getting old and losing his grip, but it's not true, he was voted out by Ministry Wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemort's return. They've demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot – that's the Wizarding High Court – and they're talking about taking away his Order of Merlin, First Class, too."

"But Dumbledore says he doesn't care what they do as long as they don't take him off the Chocolate Frog cards," said Bill, grinning.

"It's no laughing matter," said Arthur sharply. "If he carries on defying the Ministry like this, he could end up in Azkaban and the last thing we want is Dumbledore locked up. While You-Know-Who knows Dumbledore's out there and wise to what he's up to, he's going to go cautiously for a while. If Dumbledore's out of the way – well, You-Know-Who will have a clear field."

"But if Voldemort's trying to recruit more Death Eaters, it's bound to get out that he's come back, isn't it?" asked Harry.

"Voldemort doesn't march up to people's houses and bang on their front doors, Harry," said Sirius. "He tricks, jinxes, and blackmails them. He's well-practiced at operating in secrecy. In any case, gathering followers is only one thing he's interested in, he's got other plans too, plans he can put into operation very quietly indeed, and he's concentrating on them at the moment."

"What's he after apart from followers?" Harry asked swiftly.

Sirius and Remus exchanged the most fleeting of looks before Morrighan whispered, "Stuff he can only get by stealth."

Sirius tensed beside her, clearly surprised that she said what he had been thinking, but she remembered that he had said it in the book. Harry, however, continued to look confused and Sirius said, "Like a weapon. Something he didn't have last time."

"When he was powerful before?"

"Yes."

"Like what kind of weapon?" said Harry. "Something worse than the _Avada Kedavra_–?"

"That's enough."

Molly was back, by the door. She looked ready to spit fire and Morrighan was instantly reminded of her own mother when she went too far.

"I want you in bed, now. All of you," she added, looking around at Fred, George, Ron, and Hermione. "I've got a new room cleaned up for you, Morrighan, so you can have some privacy."

"You can't boss us–" Fred began.

"Watch me," Molly hissed. "You've given Harry plenty of information. Any more and you might just as well induct him into the order straightaway."

"Why not?" Harry breathed. "I'll join, I want to join, I want to fight–"

"No," said Remus sternly. "The Order is comprised only of overage wizards. Wizards who have left school," he added, frowning at Fred and George. "There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you… I think Molly's right, Sirius. We've said enough."

Sirius conceded and the children at the table were ushered off to bed by Molly. Morrighan watched them leave before bidding everyone goodnight and wandering up to the room Molly had made up for her, down the hall from the twins.


	2. Getting Settled In

**A/N: I hope you guys are enjoying this story! It's very out of my comfort zone, and there's obviously LOTS of book dialogue, but not all of it will be like that. That's part of why I gave you an extra-long chapter to begin with. That and I don't know how often I'll be able to update, what with college and such. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this; it's a lot of fun for me to write.**

Morrighan knew that at that moment the boys were meeting in Harry and Ron's room, discussing what they had just heard, wondering what the weapon could be. Hermione was telling Ginny everything. Molly was wandering around, making sure they were sleeping.

She changed into some of the nightclothes she had gotten while out with Tonks and Hermione and thought over her long day. It was hard to believe that just one night prior she had found herself in the hallway of Grimmauld Place half-clothed and confused. Now she was just wondering what it would be like in the morning. Perhaps Albus would find some way to send her back, but he had more pressing matters on his mind, like Horcruxes and Voldemort. And if things continued on, he wouldn't have enough time to take care of those things and send her back. Morrighan decided as she crawled into bed that she ought to get used to the idea of being where she was, because there wasn't likely to be someone else who could send her home again.

And it wasn't so bad, she thought to herself, dozing slightly. Sirius seemed to be glad of company, and certainly it was better for Harry that Sirius wasn't a royal grouch all the time. She seemed to be doing some good already

As she turned and tossed, trying to find a comfortable sleeping position, she heard a loud crack and found herself rolling into a person. She nearly squealed with fright, but a hand covered her mouth and the owner of the body shushed her firmly.

"Sorry to scare you," said the voice of Fred. "I didn't get to say good night properly."

Morrighan let out a sigh of relief that was caught against the hand over her mouth. For a moment, she thought she was being attacked or kidnapped. He moved his hand and she whispered, "I thought you'd still be in Harry's room."

"How did you–? Right, alternate reality," he chuckled softly. "So, what do you think? Were we on the right track with what we were talking about?"

Morrighan considered him for a moment, wondering what she ought to say. To tell him that they were completely off base would be taken as a lie, she was sure. To tell him something to cloud truth and bend the conversation into foggy, unclear semantics would be dishonest. Besides, anything she said could change the course of the plot to a point that Harry might not win. She had to be careful.

"I can't tell you, Fred," she whispered. "I wish I could answer all your questions, tell you all the answers, give you the story with a happy ending and a smile, but I could change everything. I can't do that."

"You've already changed everything," he whispered, touching her cheek softly. "You're here. You weren't here in your books. I'd say that's a pretty good change."

Morrighan couldn't help it. She smiled a little at his statement, he was just that charming. Certainly, spending his summer with the famous Sirius Black, charmer of women extraordinaire, hadn't hurt much, but Fred Weasley also had a natural sort of charm, the one must be born with. But Morrighan had dated men with that sort of charm, and it always ended badly. Always. It was very difficult to find charm with substance.

"Shouldn't you be going to bed?" she said as he moved a little bit closer. "Don't we have cleaning to do in the morning?"

"Yeah," he whispered, "but I wanted to say hello, be more personal about it. There are a lot of faces running around and I wanted to make sure you noticed me."

"Trust me," she breathed back as he touched his fingers gently to her cheek, "you're impossible not to notice."

Morrighan couldn't believe the position she was in. Throughout her reading the books she had fantasized about Fred Weasley, being his, being next to him, kissing him… And here he was, in her bed, but she wasn't a fifteen-year-old girl anymore. She was a twenty-year-old woman, and he was barely seventeen, and despite the fact that his hand on her face felt so right, she knew there was something intrinsically wrong about it. It didn't fit.

But she wasn't about to waste the opportunity.

When Fred's lips touched hers, she eagerly met the kiss. It was short, but it was intense. She wanted so badly for this world to be different from the last one, for kissing to feel like stories said they would, fire at a touch and dizzy in the head. But Fred's kisses felt no different from any other boy she'd ever kissed, except he was a bit better practiced than some of her earlier attempts. It was disappointing, but not so disappointing that she stopped. She was used to kisses feeling that way.

It was over quickly, however. Fred chuckled softly and whispered, "Gotta get some sleep if you're helping with the cleaning tomorrow, sunshine."

Without another word, he Disapparated.

That night, her dreams were full of red hair and kisses. When she awoke the following morning, she shivered, thinking about how close he had been to her the night before, how no one in the house would have known anything about it, anything they may or may not have done.

Morrighan awoke to someone kissing her. She opened her eyes with shock, finding Fred standing over her, leaning down, pressing his lips to her lips, cheek, ear, neck.

"Good morning," he said softly when he realized she was awake. "We're cleaning this morning. Doxies. Mum told me to wake you."

"Well, you certainly did," she said with a smile, accepting him when he pressed his mouth to hers once more.

"C'mon," he murmured against her lips. "Mum will get fussy if we take too long and she might come up here. Can't have that."

She dressed quickly in clothes that were plain and not too dear to her and rushed downstairs to eat breakfast. Molly told them where they would be meeting and she scarfed down a half a plate of sausage and a piece of toast. Growing up with two little brothers, not to mention the rest of her family, Morrighan had gotten used to eating a lot and eating fast. You never knew when the food would disappear before you had time to grab seconds.

She arrived in the drawing room with Harry and Ron to find Molly, Fred, George, Hermione, and Ginny with cloths tied over their noses and mouths. Morrighan was immediately reminded of hold-ups in cheesy old western films and had to restrain her giggles. The large bottles of black liquid with spray nozzles did not help the image and she sniggered softly, shaking her head dismissively when Fred gave her a questioning look.

"Cover your faces and take a spray," Molly said when they came in. "It's Doxycide. I've never seen an infestation this bad – _what_ that house-elf's been doing for the last ten years–"

Hermione's face was clearly not happy with Molly's words, even with the cloth on her face.

"Kreacher's really old, he probably couldn't manage–"

"You'd be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to, Hermione," Sirius said, strolling into the room with a bag of dead rats. "I've just been feeding Buckbeak," he informed Harry, who was eyeing the bag with curiosity and a bit of concern. "I keep him upstairs in my mother's bedroom. Anyway… this writing desk…"

He tossed the rats aside and bent over the writing desk, which was trembling oddly. Morrighan was fascinated.

"Well, Molly, I'm pretty sure this is a boggart, but perhaps we ought to let Mad-Eye have a shifty at it before we let it out – knowing my mother, it could be something much worse."

"Right you are, Sirius," said Molly.

Morrighan could have cut the unspoken tension between the two with a knife, despite their light-hearted manners with each other. They were still on edge from the night before, and Morrighan couldn't explain it, but it bothered her more than it ought to have that Sirius wasn't in good spirits. She supposed it had something to do with reading him miserable all the time, and how unfair his life had been.

There came a bell from below and screams and cries echoed from downstairs.

"I keep telling them not to ring the doorbell!" Sirius sighed, rushing out of the room, running down the stairs as his mother shrieked: "_Stains of dishonor, filthy half-breeds, blood traitors, children of filth…_"

"Would you catch the door, please, Morrighan?" Molly said politely.

Morrighan did so, listening carefully. She could hear Sirius covering his mother's portrait, and Kingsley's voice: "Hestia's just relieved me, so she's got Moody's cloak now, thought I'd leave a report for Dumbledore…"

She closed the door, wary that Harry was trying to listen in. Molly was looking down at _Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pests_, and Morrighan cringed. She wondered if they had ever told her that the man was a fraud. She expected that it wasn't well known news.

"Right, you lot, you need to be careful, because doxies bite and their teeth are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote here, but I'd rather nobody needed it. When I say the word, start spraying immediately. They'll come flying out at us, I expect, but it says on the sprays one good squirt will paralyze them. When they're immobilized, just throw them in this bucket. All right – _squirt_!"

Morrighan had been spraying several seconds when a doxy came out of the curtain, looking scaled, jewel-encrusted, and almost reptilian. It had nasty, sharp little teeth, and it was black and hairy where it wasn't winged. She sprayed and sprayed, allowing Harry to pick up her fallen doxies. He seemed to sense that she didn't want to touch the things.

"Fred, what are you doing?" Molly snapped. "Spray that at once and throw it away!"

Morrighan didn't have to look around. She knew Fred was trying to physically restrain a doxy.

"Right-o," he said, spraying the doxy, but shoving it in his pocket when his mother wasn't looking. She could hear the twins whispering with Harry.

"We want to experiment with doxy venom for our Skiving Snackboxes."

"What are Skiving Snackboxes?"

"Range of sweets to make you ill. Not seriously ill, mind, just ill enough to get you out of class when you feel like it. Fred and I have been developing them this summer. They're double-ended, colored-coded chews. If you eat the orange end of the Puking Pastilles, you throw up. Moment you've been rushed out of the lesson for the hospital wing, you swallow the purple half–"

" '– which restores you to full fitness, enabling you to pursue the leisure activity of your own choice during an hour that would otherwise have been devoted to unprofitable boredom.' That's what we're putting in the adverts, anyway. But they still need a bit of work. At the moment our testers are having a bit of trouble stopping puking long enough to swallow the purple end."

Morrighan bit back a giggle at that.

"Testers?"

"Us. We take it in turns. George did the Fainting Fancies – we both tried the Nosebleed Nougat…"

"Mum thought we'd been dueling."

"Joke shop still on, then?"

"Well, we haven't had a chance to get premises yet, so we're running it as a mail-order service at the moment. We put advertisements in the _Daily Prophet_ last week."

"All thanks to you, mate. But don't worry… Mum hasn't got a clue. She won't read the _Daily Prophet_ anymore, 'cause of it telling lies about you and Dumbledore."

Morrighan smiled a little as Fred bent down and swept up a few of her doxies she had just sprayed, stuffing them in his pocket. He winked at her brazenly as he straightened up, spraying the doxy coming toward her before it reached her line of fire. It was strange to see them so early in the process, knowing how successful the twins would become.

They continued de-doxying until it was past noon, when they were finally free of all the doxies in the curtains. Molly said they would be working on the cabinets and their inhabiting artifacts after lunch.

The doorbell rang again.

"Stay here," Molly said. "I'll bring up some sandwiches."

She left them alone, closing the door firmly behind her and stating that Morrighan was in charge, which Morrighan found incredibly funny, as she had only been there a couple of days.

She allowed them to rush to the window to look down at the doorstep.

"Mundungus!" said Hermione. "What's he brought all those cauldrons for?"

"Probably looking for a safe place to keep them," said Harry. "Isn't that what he was doing the night he was supposed to be tailing me? Picking up dodgy cauldrons?"

"Yeah, you're right!" Fred said, peering down at the sight below. "Blimey, Mum won't like that…"

Morrighan just smirked to herself, waiting patiently for what she knew was about to happen.

"Mundungus is talking to Sirius and Kingsley," Fred said thoughtfully. "Can't hear properly… d'you reckon we can risk Extendable Ears?"

"Might be worth it. I could sneak upstairs and get a pair–"

And the screeching began, rendering Extendable Ears completely unnecessary.

"WE ARE NOT RUNNIGN A HIDEOUT FOR STOLEN GOODS!"

"I love hearing Mum shouting at someone else," Fred said wistfully. "It makes such a nice change."

" – COMPLETELY IRRESPONSIBLE, AS IF WE HAVEN'T GOT ENOUGH TO WORRY ABOUT WITHOUT YOU DRAGGING STOLEN CAULDRONS INTO THE HOUSE–"

"The idiots are letting her get into her stride," said George. "You've got to head her off early, otherwise she builds up a head of steam and goes on for hours. And she's been dying to have a go at Mundungus ever since he sneaked off when he was supposed to be following you, Harry – and there goes Sirius's mum again–"

Sure enough, the portrait began screaming again, covering Molly's voice surprisingly well. George went to shut the door, but Kreacher entered before he could.

"… smells like a drain and a criminal to boot, but she's not better, nasty old blood traitor with her brats messing up my Mistress's house, oh my poor Mistress, if she knew, if she knew the scum they've let in her house, what would she say to old Kreacher, oh the shame of it, Mudbloods and werewolves and traitors and thieves, poor old Kreacher, what can he do…"

"Hello, Kreacher," said Fred, loudly and antagonistically, snapping the door shut.

"Kreacher did not see Young Master," Kreacher said with a bow. "Nasty little brat of a blood traitor it is."

Morrighan cringed.

"Sorry?" said George. "Didn't catch that last bit."

"Kreacher said nothing," Kreacher said, bowing once more, "and there's its twin, unnatural little beasts that they are."

"… and there's the Mudblood, standing there, bold and brass, of if my Mistress knew, oh how she'd cry, and the strange girl, the one they said is a Mudblood, she heard the werewolf and the blood traitor talking about the strange Mudblood, oh yes, and there's a new boy, Kreacher doesn't know his name, what is he doing here, Kreacher doesn't know…"

"This is Harry Potter, Kreacher," said Hermione tentatively. "Harry Potter."

"The Mudblood is talking to Kreacher as though she is my friend, if Kreacher's Mistress saw him in such company, oh what would she say–"

"Don't call her a Mudblood!" Ron and Ginny snarled, and Morrighan cringed even more. So many years of reading the word, a word that in her world wasn't even a real word, and it had become more that awful to her. Here, in this reality, it pained her to hear it more than she had thought possible.

"It doesn't matter," Hermione whispered, "he's not in his right mind, he doesn't know what he's–"

"No, Hermione," Morrighan said softly. "He knows exactly what he's _saying_. Trust me, he's very much in his right mind."

Kreacher was still looking at Harry.

"Is it true? Is it Harry Potter? Kreacher can see the scar, it must be true, that's that boy who stopped the Dark Lord, Kreacher wonders how he did it–"

"Don't we all, Kreacher?" said Fred.

"What do you want, anyway?" said George.

"Kreacher is cleanly."

"A likely story," said Sirius from behind Morrighan. The look he was giving the elf… it was vicious. There was no more screaming in the hall, and Kreacher bowed even lower. "Stand up straight. Now, what are you up to?"

"Kreacher is cleaning. Kreacher lives to serve the noble house of Black–"

" – and it's getting blacker every day, it's filthy," Sirius said lazily.

"Master always liked his little joke. Master was a nasty ungrateful swine who broke his mother's heart–"

"Kreacher, I think that this room can be left to us," Morrighan said hastily. "We'll probably finish it today."

"Whatever Young Miss says," Kreacher said, before bowing and muttering, "Mudblood, think's she is so high and mighty, ordering Kreacher around, oh my poor Mistress, what would she say if she saw Kreacher serving the strange Mudblood and Master, how she hated him, what a disappointment he was–"

"I asked what you were up to," said Sirius. "Every time you show up pretending to be cleaning, you sneak something off to your room so we can't throw it out."

"Kreacher would never move anything from its proper place in Master's house," said Kreacher, but then he murmured, "Mistress would never forgive Kreacher if the tapestry was thrown out, seven centuries it's been in the family, Kreacher must save it, Kreacher will not let Master and the blood traitors and the brats destroy it–"

"I thought it might be that," said Sirius, glaring at the tapestry. "She'll have put another Permanent Sticking Charm on the back of it, I don't doubt, but if I can get rid of it I certainly will. Now go away, Kreacher."

The elf shuffled away, muttering as he went.

" – comes back from Azkaban ordering Kreacher around, oh my poor Mistress, what would she say if she saw the house now, scum living in it, her treasures thrown out, she swore he was no son of hers and he's back, they say he's a murderer too–"

"Keep muttering and I will be a murderer!" he yelled, slamming the door behind Kreacher.

"Sirius, he's not right in the head," Hermione pleaded, "I don't think he realizes we can hear him."

"He's been alone too long," Morrighan said softly. "He's been alone with nothing but Sirius's mother's portrait for company. He doesn't know anything different, and I suspect he's not one for change."

"If you just set him free," said Hermione hopefully, "maybe–"

"We can't set him free, he knows too much about the Order," Sirius snapped. "And anyway, the shock would kill him. You suggest to him that he leaves this house, see how he takes it."

Sirius crossed to the tapestry and the others followed, Morrighan frowning, knowing what was on it: the large family tree of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black.

"You're not on here!" Harry cried out after scanning the bottom of it for a moment.

"I used to be there," Sirius said, pointing to the burn mark that used to be his spot. "My sweet old mother blasted me off after I ran away from home – Kreacher's quite fond of muttering the story under his breath."

"You ran away from home?"

"When I was about sixteen," Sirius said softly. "I'd had enough."

"Where did you go?" Harry asked, shocked.

"To stay with the Potters," Morrighan said, scanning the more distant branches of the family for familiar names. "They adopted him as a sort of second son. When he was seventeen, his Uncle Alphard gave him a bunch of gold so that he could take care of himself. See, Alphard should have been here, but he's been blasted off, I think after he left Sirius the money."

Sirius gave her a fond sort of smile.

"But… why did you…?"

"Leave?" Sirius's smile turned a bit bitter, running his fingers through his hair. "Because I hated the whole lot of them: my parents, with their pure-blood mania, convinced that to be a Black made you practically royal… my idiot brother, soft enough to believe them… that's him."

Sirius pointed at the bottom of the tree, at the name REGULUS BLACK, and the date of death, about fifteen years earlier, which followed his date of birth.

"He was younger than me," Sirius muttered, "and a much better son, as I was constantly reminded."

"But he died," Harry pointed out.

"Yeah," Sirius nodded. "Stupid idiot… he joined the Death Eaters."

"You're kidding!"

"You're honestly surprised, Harry?" Morrighan chuckled. "You've been in this house nearly as long as I have. Is it really so hard to believe that Sirius's mother raised a Death Eater?"

"Were – were his parents Death Eaters as well?"

"No, no, but believe me, they thought Voldemort had the right idea, they were all for the purification of the Wizarding race, getting rid of Muggle-borns and having purebloods in charge. They weren't alone either, there were quite a few people, before Voldemort showed his true colors, who thought he had the right idea about things… They got cold feet when they saw what he was prepared to do to get power, though. But I bet my parents thought Regulus was a right little hero for joining up at first."

"Was he killed by an Auror?" Harry asked nervously.

"Oh no," Sirius said. "No, he was murdered by Voldemort. Or on Voldemort's orders, more likely, I doubt Regulus was ever important enough to be killed by Voldemort in person. From what I found out after he died, he got in so far, then panicked about what he was being asked to do and tried to back out. Well, you don't just hand in your resignation to Voldemort. It's a lifetime of service or death."

Morrighan struggled to keep her face straight. In a way, that was true, but Regulus had been sneakier, braver about the whole affair than Sirius knew. Perhaps, later on, if she had a chance, she would tell him the whole truth about how his brother had died, about how brave Regulus had been, how self-sacrificing. Sirius would be proud.

"Lunch," said Molly's voice.

She was holding out her wand, balancing a large tray piled high with sandwiches and cake. She was still flushed with anger, but most of them rushed toward her for food anyway, all but Sirius, Harry, and Morrighan.

"I haven't looked at this for years. There's Phineas Nigellus… my great-great-grandfather, see? Least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had… and Araminta Meliflua… cousin of my mother's… tried to force through a Ministry Bill to make Muggle-hunting legal… and dear Aunt Elladora… she started the family tradition of beheading house-elves when they got too old to carry tea trays… of course, anytime the family produced someone halfway decent they were disowned. I see Tonks isn't on here. Maybe that's why Kreacher won't take orders from her – he's supposed to do whatever anyone in the family asks him…"

"You and Tonks are related?" Harry asked, surprised.

"Yes," Morrighan said with a proud smile. "Her mother Andromeda was Sirius's cousin, but she's not here either, burned off as well, see–"

She pointed to another burn mark between Bellatrix Lestrange and Narcissa Malfoy.

"Andromeda's sisters are still here because they made lovely, respectable pure-blood marriages," Sirius explained, "but Andromeda married a Muggle-born, Ted Tonks, so–"

Sirius mimicked blasting the tapestry and laughed sourly. Morrighan gave him a tight smile, but Harry was too busy examining the names around Andromeda to make any sort of comment.

"You're related to the Malfoys!"

"The pure-blood families are all interrelated," said Sirius. "If you're only going to let your sons and daughters marry purebloods your choice is very limited, there are hardly any of us left. Molly and I are cousins by marriage and Arthur's something like my second cousin once removed. But there's no point looking for them on here – if ever a family was a bunch of blood traitors it's the Weasleys."

"Lestrange…" Harry muttered.

"They're in Azkaban," Sirius snapped.

Harry looked up at him, but Sirius shook his head.

"Bellatrix and her husband, brother-in-law and Barty Crouch, Junior," Morrighan said softly, were all brought in together, and you know why, Harry."

Harry nodded.

"You never said she was your–"

"Does it matter if she's my cousin?" Sirius barked. "As far as I'm concerned, they're not my family. She's certainly not my family. I haven't seen her since I was your age, unless you count a glimpse of her coming in to Azkaban. D'you think I'm proud of having relatives like her?"

"Sorry," Harry said hastily, "I didn't meant – I was just surprised, that's all–"

"It doesn't matter, don't apologize," Sirius muttered. He turned around, shoving his hands into his pockets and giving Morrighan a dark look. "I don't like being back here. I never thought I'd be stuck in this house again."

Morrighan nodded. She knew. She understood. She couldn't say she was particularly thrilled about being cooped up there, either, what with the whole of the wizarding world outside to explore.

"It's ideal for headquarters, of course," he continued. "My father put every security measure known to Wizard-kind on it when he lived here. It's Unplottable, so Muggles could never come and call – as if they'd want to – and now Dumbledore's added his protection, you'd be hard put to find a safer house anywhere. Dumbledore's Secret-Keeper for the Order, you know – nobody can find headquarters unless he tells them personally where it is, except for Morrighan, I guess – that note Moody showed you last night, that was from Dumbledore… If my parents could see the use it was being put to now… well, my mother's portrait should give you some idea…"

Morrighan nodded.

"Well, it's certainly the safest place for the two of us, and although I don't like the idea of staying here either," she said, "at least we'll be able to find plenty to do, between the two of us. I wish I could go to Harry's trial, though."

"Don't worry," Sirius said, noticing Harry's face fall a little. "I'm sure they're going to clear you, there's definitely something in the International Statute of Secrecy about being allowed to use magic to save your own life."

"But if they do expel me," said Harry softly, "can I come back here and live with you?"

Sirius smiled a little.

"We'll see."

"I'd feel a lot better about the hearing if I knew I didn't have to go back to the Dursleys."

"They must be bad if you prefer this place," Sirius remarked with a little laugh.

"Hurry up, you lot, or there'll be no food left!" Molly called.

They ate their food happily. Fred had saved Morrighan a couple of sandwiches, just in case they had waited too long, but there was enough for everyone.

The rest of the afternoon was spent clearing out glass cabinets, which was an adventure all of its own. The hardest part for Morrighan was not saying a word when she saw a certain large locket that no one could open being passed around and examined. Every fiber of her being wanted to destroy it, attack it, tell the others all about the horcruxes, but she couldn't. Some things absolutely should not be changed, for if Harry didn't have to chase down the locket, everything else could be thrown off course. That was one risk she didn't feel was worth it.

That evening, Morrighan and Fred found themselves doing dishes together, without magic, and he whispered, "You and Sirius seem cozy."

She laughed.

"Well, I'm going to be cooped up with the man in this house indefinitely. Would you rather we were furious with each other?"

"No," he breathed on the back of her neck, "but I'd really like getting a bit more of your attention."

There was a blush creeping onto her cheeks and she prayed he wouldn't notice, but he kissed her neck gently and her thoughts were no longer on the blush. If she was being honest with herself, the stolen snogs with Fred were awkward, not as romantic and hot as she had imagined they would be. They would have to have a talk, but for now, she would enjoy what was happening between them.

The next morning, Morrighan got up early two watch Harry leave for his hearing, wished him luck, and chatted up Remus and Tonks for a bit about how things were going in the outside world. She and Sirius shared a pot of tea before Fred stole her away and began snogging her furiously in a third floor bedroom.

"Fred," she muttered into his hair as he explored her neck with his teeth, "this doesn't mean anything, you realize."

"Mm-hmm," he hummed against her skin.

"I mean, this snogging, it's nice, but it's not going to go anywhere. No strings, all right?"

"Yup," he said, before running his tongue along the shell of her ear.

"I mean, you're okay with us just… just messing around a bit until you leave for school and then ending it all?"

"Yeah, now shut up and kiss me," he hissed, swiftly attaching his lips to hers to cut off any more clarifications she might have had.

She didn't have any more, thankfully.


	3. The Woes of Molly and Morrighan

**A/N: OMG, I forgot to dedicate that last chapter to **_**stellinator**_**, but I guess I can dedicate this one to **_**stellinator**_** instead, for getting me off my lazy ass and motivating me to finish off the second chapter by adding this story to favorites. Hope you enjoyed it, **_**stellinator**_**! Obviously, there's a lot of familiar material right now, but I promise it won't ALL be like this. Obviously, she's not following them to school. Soon enough, my dears, soon enough.**

**-J**

It wasn't too awfully long when Harry returned from the Ministry to find everyone in the kitchen, which was essentially the hangout because it was always the cleanest room, on the orders of Molly Weasley. Morrighan didn't have to wait to hear how the hearing went because she knew he got off. She was watching Sirius, concerned for how he would take the news, because she knew he had been bouncing around the idea of Harry becoming a fugitive of the law and living with them in Grimmauld Place. She knew he had become attached to the notion.

So when Harry announced that he'd gotten off, Morrighan sat down beside Sirius, gently taking his hand under the table and gently massaging it with her thumb, knowing that behind his pleased expression, he was less than pleased. He proved it by clutching her hand aggressively, to the point where she was sure he had white knuckles, but she wasn't going to give away his pain and look to find out.

"I knew it!" Ron yelled. "You always get away with stuff!"

"They were bound to clear you," Hermione stated, her shaky demeanor completely contradicting her words. "There was no case against you, none at all…"

"Everyone seems quite relieved, though, considering they all knew I'd get off," Harry pointed out, grinning.

"That's enough, settle down!" Arthur shouted, also grinning like an idiot, waving his hand at his war-chanting trio. "Listen, Sirius, Lucius Malfoy was at the Ministry–"

"What?" Sirius snapped, his hand gripping Morrighan's even tighter.

"Be quiet, you three! Yes, we saw him talking to Fudge on level nine, then they went up to Fudge's office together. Dumbledore ought to know."

"Absoultely. We'll tell him, don't worry."

"Well, I'd better get going, there's a vomiting toilet in Bethnal Green waiting for me. Molly, I'll be late, I'm covering for Tonks, but Kingsley might be dropping in for dinner–"

"That's enough –Fred – George – Ginny!" Molly cried as Arthur took his leave. "Harry dear, come and sit down, have some lunch, you hardly ate breakfast…"

"'Course, once Dumbledore turned up on your side, there was no way they were going to convict you," said Ron, dishing up mashed potatoes.

"Yeah, he swung it for me," Harry said. Suddenly, he clapped his hand to his scar.

"What's up?" Hermione said, worried.

"Scar," Harry mumbled. "But it's nothing… It happens all the time now…"

Morrighan bit her lip but didn't turn to say anything to them, didn't even acknowledge she had overheard. Voldemort was experiencing a great fluctuation of emotion, and thus his unknowing Horcrux was experiencing random shoots of pain to his scar as Voldemort grew stronger.

Ron said cheerily, "I bet Dumbledore turns up this evening to celebrate with us, you know."

"I don't think he'll be able to," Molly said, setting down some roast chicken. "He's really very busy at the moment. SHUT UP!"

And that was what it took to finally silence the war chants and almost enough to make Fred, George, and Ginny a bit sheepish.

Days went by in a has for a little while, Sirius getting just a bit moody, Fred getting ever more demanding of Morrighan's time, and Harry growing increasingly sullen about his lot in life. She knew he was moody and self-centered this year, but she hadn't realized it would be so bad so soon, although Sirius's obvious desire for Harry never to leave the house was plainly not making matters any better.

And then that day came when booklists arrived and Morrighan braced herself for the pain of dealing with it all. After all, they'd be leaving in the morning. Leaving, and Morrighan and Sirius would be all alone in no time at all.

That morning, Morrighan and Sirius were sitting in Buckbeak's room, as they had taken to calling it, Sirius feeding Buckbeak and Morrighan hiding from Fred, who had been trying to worm out of her who their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher would be through kisses.

"So," Sirius said, sitting down on the bed beside her, "you and Fred."

She tensed.

"It's nothing very serious," she said with a shrug. "We're just fooling around. We're young, you know? And he's very sweet, in his way, and I'm very much alone here."

"You're not alone," he muttered. "You've got me."

Morrighan smiled at him, feeling very cheesy as she took his hand and said, "No, we've got each other."

For the first time in days, she saw him smile, just a little bit.

"You know," he admitted, "I felt like Harry getting off meant I was doomed to a long go of suffering in this house by myself, but I had forgotten that we'll be here together. I have to say, I've gotten very used to you being around."

"I suppose that's a good thing?" she laughed.

"Yeah," he snorted. "Yeah, it's good. Anyway, promise me something, Morrighan," he whispered, brushing a bit of hair out of her eyes.

"Anything."

His gray eyes swirled with some dark, prophetic something and she wanted to move closer, to fall into them, to know what secret thoughts lay behind those swirling, intense eyes.

"Don't you ever leave me," he whispered huskily.

"Never," she sighed, hugging him, "but you have to promise me something."

What she was about to say, what she was about to ask of him, was going to change everything. She was going to change the course of the story, and part of her was worried it would make everything turn out wrong, but somehow, it didn't feel wrong to say what she was about to say. It wasn't like telling Harry about Horcruxes before he was ready. It was different somehow.

"Anything."

She looked back into his eyes, brushing her thumb gently along his hot, bristly cheek.

"If I ask you to stay, no matter what your reasons for going, stay."

He frowned. He searched her face for meaning, for explanation, but she didn't want to explain. She didn't want him to understand.

"What aren't you telling me?"

"It will change things," she said softly, "but if you don't, it will absolutely break my heart. You need to trust me when I ask you to do things."

After a moment, he nodded, and they hugged each other tightly. It would have been a sweet moment, if not for the massive hippogriff chomping down on dead squirrels in the corner. Morrighan inhaled deeply, smelling Sirius's enticing, spicy scent. He was so different from Fred, so much older, so much more practiced and sure of himself with every motion. He had lived more than any person ought to live by the time he was locked up and twenty-one years old, so even though he was almost frozen as a twenty-one year old, he wasn't quite as immature as most twenty-one year old men would be. He had seen death, seen pain, seen war. He wasn't really a man, not like Remus or Arthur, but he certainly wasn't a boy like Fred or George or Harry.

That night, they found themselves at the party for Ron and Hermione being named prefects. Harry looked a little sullen, and Sirius looked more sullen for it, but overall people were behaving themselves. Surprisingly, Fred had completely ignored Morrighan all night, probably trying to wrap his brain around Ron being named prefect. Arthur toasted the new prefects and the discussion commenced.

"I was never a prefect myself," Tonks said good-naturedly, moving in for some food. "My Head of House said I lacked certain necessary qualities."

"Like what?" asked Ginny from across the table.

"Like the ability to behave myself," Tonks said casually. Morrighan and Ginny laughed.

"What about you, Sirius?" Ginny inquired, thumping a choking Hermione on the back.

"No one would have made me a prefect, I spent too much time in detention with James. Lupin was the good boy, he got the badge."

"He couldn't have been too good, if he was such good friends with you lot," Morrighan joked. "And he certainly didn't reign you in like he ought to have done, so he can't have been a decent prefect."

Remus nodded and blushed a little, but she just laughed and said she was joking, but Harry seemed to take heart in the knowledge that his father hadn't been a prefect.

Morrighan wandered the party with Sirius, catching snippets of conversation, watching Harry wander around emptily. Remus and Kingsley discussed the possible reasons Harry, the obvious choice, hadn't been chosen, Tonks listened to Ron go on and on about his new broom, Hermione went on a rant about house-elves, and Molly was getting on Bill about his hair again. Then Morrighan saw Moody pull a photograph out of his pocket and show it to Harry.

The Order of the Phoenix, the original group. The names Harry was hearing Morrighan knew by heart, the deaths she could almost list in sequence… Marlene McKinnon, Edgar Bones, Dorcas Meadowes, Benjy Fenwick, Caradoc Dearborn, the Prewett Twins, the Potters… so many people, many of them quite young, and they would be gone within a year or two of the picture in Moody's hand.

Sirius asked to see the photo and Harry took off upstairs. Morrighan knew that he was about to find Molly, struggling with a boggart, and when they heard Harry shouting, Sirius, Remus, Moody and Morrighan rushed upstairs to investigate the noise.

Morrighan saw realization dawn on Remus's face, but before he could act she took out her wand, took a deep breath and said, "_Riddikulus_."

The dead Harry vanished from the floor and Remus gave Morrighan an impressed look before turning back to the matter at hand. There was, instead a large chasm in the floor… Morrighan was afraid of heights. She waved her wand and it disappeared.

Molly Weasley was still an epic wreak, sobbing and weeping, and Remus walked toward her.

"Molly… Molly, don't…"

And she collapsed against him, sobbing into his shoulder.

"Molly, it was just a boggart. Just a stupid boggart…"

"I see them d-d-dead all the time! All the t-t-time! I d-d-dream about it… D-d-don't tell Arthur. I d-d-don't want him to know… being silly… Harry, I'm so sorry, what you must think of me? Not even able to get rid of a boggart…"

"Don't be stupid," Harry winced.

"I'm just s-s-so worried. Half the f-f-family's in the Order, it'll b-b-be a miracle if we all come through this… and P-P-Percy's not talking to us… What if something d-d-dreadful happens and we had never m-m-made up? And what's going to happen if Arthur and I get killed, who's g-g-going to look after Ron and Ginny?"

"Molly, that's enough," Remus said firmly. "This isn't like last time. The order is better prepared, we've got a head start, we know what Voldemort's up to–"

Molly squeaked from terror at the name and Morrighan sighed.

"You're going to have to get used to hearing that for a while, Molly. And I can't promise things will be pretty, and people will get hurt and some will die, but things aren't going to be like last time, and it's nothing like the slaughter you're afraid of right now. I promise."

"Don't worry about Percy," Sirius said suddenly. "He'll come round. It's a matter of time before Voldemort moves out into the open; once he does, the whole Ministry's going to be begging us to forgive them. And I'm not sure I'll be accepting their apology."

"And as for who's going to look after Ron and Ginny if you and Arthur died," Remus added wryly, "what do you think we'd do, let them starve?"

Molly brightened considerably and remarked herself as silly once more, but as Morrighan and Sirius sat up in the kitchen downing firewhiskey later that night, she couldn't help but think that Molly was anything but silly. This man, this man sitting across the table from her, was likely to be dead in a matter of months. She liked the idea of saving him, of making him stay out of the battle, but this was Sirius Black. When Harry's life was in danger, was Morrighan Capilla really going to have the power to keep Sirius from risking his own life, losing his own life, for the good of his godson? Who was she to ask him to stay?

"Boggarts are third year," Sirius slurred at her after a couple of hours. "You did good. Scared of heights?"

"Terrified," she admitted. "Fell out of a tree when I was ten, haven't been able to handle heights since."

"When we get out of this place," he said, "when my name is cleared and Dumbledore gets you listed as a real person, I'm going to cure your fear of heights. I'm going to take you on my motorbike and fly you all over the world, wherever you want to go, and you're going to bloody love it."

Morrighan giggled a little, but he frowned at her, thinking she was taking him lightly.

"I will, you know," he growled. "And then I'll buy you a broom, any broom you like, and you and me, we can zoom across the countryside like the Ballycastle Bats or something." He frowned deeper. "No, no, not Ballycastle, I'm thinking of the Wanderers. Wigtown Wanderers."

"The butchers?" Morrighan asked. "You want us to run around with meat cleavers?"

"Absolutely," he said, nodding fervently. "And then we can zoom around the countryside with our meat cleavers and take out Death Eaters by swooping low and beheading them. But we'd do it right, none of this nearly-headless nonsense. And then we'd go find Voldy and dice him with our meat cleavers and save Harry and things would be happy again."

"Right," Morrighan said. "That sounds lovely. Bit violent, I suppose, but lovely."

"Damn straight," Sirius growled. "What sort of broom would you like? I mean, I could get you a Firebolt, but if you're timid I'm not sure it would suit you. Maybe we ought to start you on something tamer. Cleansweep like Ron's got or a Nimbus or something. I might have an old broom around here somewhere, old one of mine. We could start you of on my broomstick, I guess."

Morrighan snorted into her firewhiskey.

"Dirty mind you've got there, missy," Sirius smirked, but she knew he had done it on purpose. "I suppose that's what Mr. Fred Weasley likes about you. Please tell me you haven't shagged in any places I come in contact with."

"We haven't shagged at all," Morrighan admitted, "so you're safe."

"Not at all?" Sirius said, confused. "What's wrong with him? Can't get it up?"

"No, nothing like that," she sighed. "I've been turning him down. I'm not exactly big on physical intimacy."

"Why not?" he said, watching her intently, obviously ready for a story.

"Promise you won't tell?" she said softly, well aware that they would not be having this conversation if either one of them was sober, but he crossed his heart and took another drink, still watching and waiting for the story. "I'm not very good at picking boys," she admitted. "I liked guys who were strong enough to handle me, but they usually were looking for ways to tear me down. My latest boyfriend emotionally abused me, and the last guy I was casually seeing, I found, was using me to cheat on his girlfriend. I tried pushing him away after that, but he raped me when he was really drunk. I haven't really been near a guy since. I've sort of resigned myself to the fact that I'll end up alone. And that's fine."

"No it's not," Sirius growled. "There's nothing fine about any of that. You are a beautiful, wonderful, beautiful girl and you deserve happiness and flowers and love and whatnot. And if Freddie so much as lays a hand on you, you let me know and I'll chop his balls off myself, understood?"

Morrighan giggled and said, "Yes, sir."

"Good," Sirius sighed. "Moony's got it in his head that he's going to end up alone, too. That he has to. But you two wouldn't be good together, as much as the thought crossed my mind. The lack of self-esteem in that relationship is like a doomed failure. You need a guy with enough self-esteem to go after what he wants, but who loves you enough to give you what you need, even when it's not what he wants."

"Profound," Morrighan said dryly.

"Don't you mock me, missy," he chastised, shaking his finger at some invisible something off to the left of her. "I'm being helpful and philosolophical."

"Philosophical."

"That's what I said. Let me work my magic. I'll find you a man. Just wait and see. And then we'll get you a broomstick. Those are the two things every girl needs. And – and then you and me and your man, we'll zoom around like the Ballytown Wanderers."

"Wigtown."

"That's what I said. And we'll take our meat cleavers and I'll chop him into little pieces and you'll be free!"

Morrighan frowned.

"I don't think that's what we agreed on earlier."

"No?" he muttered, thinking it over in his mind. "I could have sworn we had. Ah, well, we'll negotiate this further when we're allowed out of this bloody house, then. Or maybe the next time we get pissed together. Next time, we should write it down so we don't have any more misunderstandings, because I'm telling you that are what we agreed on."

"Whatever you say, Sirius," Morrighan sighed, leading him up to his room, tucking him in, and wandering to her own room, staring at the ceiling, knowing that if she fell asleep she would have nightmares, and she didn't want to admit her weakness to these wonderful, strong, brave people.


	4. Changing the Future

The next morning, Morrighan had an incredible hangover. It was made worse by the fact that everyone was yelling, particularly Molly Weasley. The Weasleys, Hermione, and Harry were leaving for Hogwarts.

" – COULD HAVE DONE HER SERIOUS INJURY, YOU IDIOTS–"

" – FILTHY HALF-BREEDS, BESMIRCHING THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS–"

Morrighan sat up in bed abruptly, threw on a sweater, and rushed downstairs, not necessarily wanting to get caught up in the action, but desperate to see if she truly could effect change on events.

"WILL YOU LOT GET DOWN HERE NOW, PLEASE!" Molly cried, just as Morrighan found herself near the front door. "Harry, you're coming with me and Tonks. Leave your trunk and your owl, Alastor's going to deal with the luggage… Oh, for heaven's sake, Sirius, Dumbledore said no!"

Sirius had appeared at Harry's hand his tail wagging happily at the prospect of getting outside.

"Oh honestly…" Molly hissed, "well, on your own head be it!"

"No, Sirius, please don't," Morrighan said, bending down to pet the dog and look him in the eye. He cocked his head a little, questioning. "If you go," she said, "Lucius Malfoy will recognize your form and it will put everyone else in a tight spot. You promised me that if I asked you to stay, you would stay. I'm asking you now, Sirius, don't go to King's Cross. Say your goodbyes here."

The dog whined a little, pawing Morrighan's leg, but the transformed, sighed, and hugged Harry.

"I did promise," he explained, "although I'm regretting that a bit right this moment. Have a great year. Don't get into more trouble than I would have. Write me if you need anything, all right?"

Harry nodded, and Morrighan felt a little guilty at the disappointed look on the boy's face, but she was thrilled to know that she could change things, that she did have the power to affect events. Maybe, just maybe, she would be able to keep the worst from happening. She wouldn't want to change too much, though. She would change one thing, if she had it in her power: Sirius Black would live.

As soon as they left, Sirius and Morrighan were left alone. They sat and stared at each other for a moment, seizing each other up. Sirius found her a potion for her hangover.

"What are we teaching you?" Sirius sighed, settling in at the kitchen table.

"Runes, Arithmancy, Astronomy, Magical Creatures, Charms, Defense, Divination, Herbology, History, Potions, and Transfiguration."

Sirius blinked.

"So… everything, then?"

"Pretty much," she laughed. "How are you and Remus going to divide the work?"

"Easy," Sirius said, sitting down with a parchment and paper. "I'm going to work it out and tell him how we divide the work based on who was best at what. We want to maximize your learning capacity." He made two columns on the parchment. "Right. Well, neither of us actually took Runes, but Lily did, and I think Remus has all of her old notes from class. They studied together. So he'll take that. He took Arithmancy and I didn't, so he'll take that. We were both top notch at Astronomy, but if I don't take that one, I'll probably end up doing nothing, so I'll do that. He was better with Creatures, and to be honest, who better to teach that than a werewolf? I was slightly better at Charms, so I'll do that. We were both excellent at Defense, so I guess I'll take that one. I barely passed Divination, so he'll take that one. He was better than me by a reasonable amount at Herbology, and a large amount at History. Uh, neither of us took Muggle Studies, love, but do you think you'll actually need a teacher on that one?"

"I don't expect so," Morrighan said honestly, looking at the very lopsided list.

"Right, so we'll leave that off, and Potions as well because the greasy git is handling that. And then Remus ought to do Transfiguration."

She snorted.

"I'm taking twelve subjects, and somehow you're only covering three of them? Between you and Remus, you're responsible for teaching me ten things and you're only doing three?"

"I can handle other, non-academic forms of education, love. Trust me; you want to pass your exams, when the time comes. You'll not want me teaching you things Remus is better suited for. It's been a lot of years since I had a wand in my hand and a book in front of me."

She relented, knowing it was best that way, anyway.

"All right, then," she said. "How are we going about our days, then?"

"How about this," he said, "I teach you one thing, you teach me one thing. Similarly, you answer one question, I answer one question, related to anything. If we don't make a game out of this, I'll lose interest in about fifteen minutes."

Morrighan was a bit worried about the sorts of things he would ask, as the gleam in his gray eyes certainly didn't suggest that he was willing to just stick to studies, but she was even more curious about the sorts of things she would be able to learn from him, so she agreed.

"Firstly," he said, "we'll start with Charms. I would say Astronomy, but it's not quite dark enough yet. Do you want to go and grab your books?"

She ran up to her room and fumbled through her things for her books, but before she even managed to find any of the Charms texts Hermione had chosen for her, Sirius was in her room, making himself comfortable on her bed.

"Love what you've done with the place," he drawled. "Charming. Best it's ever looked."

Morrighan chuckled.

"I know you hate the place, Sirius. I don't have to hear you talk about it every five minutes. If you do, I'm going to have to find a spell that knocks you out for a few hours just to get some peace!"

"You wouldn't dare," he teased. "You'd miss my company too much."

That she would, but she simply laughed, not wanting to stroke his already massive ego any more than she had to. After all, she did have to live with him.

"I noticed you didn't say a goodbye to Fred," he said causally. "Did he sneak in here for a special good-bye? Do I have to be disinfecting these sheets?"

Morrighan laughed all the harder.

"No, no, the sheets are clean. To tell you the truth, it sort of slipped my mind. I was a bit preoccupied with making sure you didn't leave."

He frowned slightly, looking over at her.

"You didn't say goodbye to your boyfriend because you were harassing me about my safety? No wonder I don't have to disinfect the sheets. You're a terrible girlfriend."

She frowned back, then turned to stare at the ceiling.

"He's not my boyfriend," she insisted. "We were just having a bit of fun. And I'd like to think my biggest failing as a girlfriend is that I pick the wrong men."

"Why's that?" he whispered, sitting up and hovering over her, looking down with curiosity.

Morrighan shrugged.

"I've just had a lot of bad experiences, that's all. And it seems like every time I pick a nice guy, I screw it up. I've grown up a lot since my last boyfriend, but I suppose it doesn't really matter now."

"Why not?"

"I'm stuck here," she muttered, closing her eyes. "You and me, stuck in this house. I can't date just as much as you can't. I can't meet people, and the people I know are very limited. Honestly, my prospects are slim."

"There's… Kingsley."

"No!" she laughed. "I refuse to be a politician's wife."

"Kingsley's not a politician, he's an Auror."

"He will be, though," she sighed. "Eventually."

"Ah, I see. Well, what about Remus? I've been trying to get him a girl for ages."

"No, not Remus."

"Why not? Too old for you? Werewolf? Some silly reason like that?"

"No," she giggled. "Nothing like that. I really love Remus, actually, but he's meant for someone else. I'm not getting in the way of that. I can't wait to see how it happens."

"So he does find a girl?"

"Absolutely."

"And you're not going to tell me who?"

"Absolutely not."

"Of course not."

"But you see what I mean? Mad-Eye Moody and I aren't likely to hit it off or anything."

"Well," he said with a cheeky grin as she opened her eyes, "there's always me!"

Morrighan felt her heart race. That wasn't fair. He was too good looking for his own good, far too wonderful to joke with her about a thing like that.

"Don't be ridiculous," she snorted, trying not to sound as though she was lying, which she was.

"What?" he laughed. "You and me, stuck in this house with often none but each other for company?" She nearly shivered. "Think of all the mischief we could get up to!"

"I'd rather not," she said softly, although her mind was already racing through all the mischief they could get into.

She spent the rest of the day telling him about her family as he taught her the ins and outs of Charms, which she found she was quite decent at. He was amazed that she had grown up with four siblings. Apparently, large families weren't particularly common with the pureblood elite.

"I would have liked to have had a few more siblings," he mused. "Would have taken some of the pressure off."

"Not for me," she muttered. "I was the golden child. Well, my brother Nathan and I. People always liked him better than me, but we were the two who were the most talented. I think my parents were disappointed with my failure to live up to all of their grand expectations. All I ever wanted was to write."

"Write what?" he asked. "Like, a reporter?"

"I thought about it," she admitted, "but I wanted to write novels. I actually was about half done with my first novel when I woke up here. It's a shame; I'll probably never finish it."

They spent the rest of the evening saying goodbye to Molly and Arthur, who cooked them one last meal before heading back to the Burrow.

"Now, you let me know if you need anything, dear," Molly told Morrighan. "Heavens knows, Sirius isn't much of a cook, so if you need someone to make something or even if you just want some company, you just let me know, all right? I imagine it will get quite dull here, just the two of you."

"Oh, I think we'll be all right, Molly," Morrighan said with a laugh. "I'm sure Sirius and I can find many ways to entertain ourselves."

"Now, when was your birthday, dear?" Molly asked. "I don't seem to remember."

Morrighan blushed.

"It's October," she said. "The twenty-third, but you don't have to worry about that."

"Nonsense, we'll have a little get-together," Molly insisted, but Morrighan knew that "little get-together" would really be a feast, if Molly got her way. Still, it was nice to know that there was some vestige of her old life that could remain the same: Morrighan got to keep her birthday.

Molly and Arthur left at half past ten, leaving Remus, Sirius, and Morrighan alone in the kitchen, drinking butterbeer and thinking over their days.

"I don't suppose you're going to tell us what you want for your birthday?" Remus joked.

"I wouldn't know what to ask for," Morrighan said honestly. "I'm not from here, after all."

"Surely there's something you want," Sirius insisted. "C'mon, you know all about our world, more than Harry does, I bet. Ask for something, anything. Except a broom, that is. I believe we've already made a deal of sorts about that."

Morrighan chuckled at Remus's confused face. So he remembered.

"You're right, we have. Well, I don't know. Just something simple, I think."

"What do you miss most from home?" Sirius pressed.

She bit her lip thoughtfully.

"I suppose… I suppose I miss my cat."

Sirius winced.

"That's out of the question," he muttered.

Morrighan laughed and said, "Yeah, I realized that a cat and you wouldn't get along too well. You know what I've always wanted, though?" They shook their heads at her. "I've always wanted to get a couple of ferrets and name them Fred and George. And… and a turtle named Albus. But mostly the ferrets."

For a moment, they just stared at her, frowning, taking in what she had said. Then, they both started laughing as if on cue.

"Oh, bloody hell… turtle named Albus… that's bloody brilliant."

"Ferrets? Not weasels? Are you sure?"

Morrighan frowned.

"Yes, I'm sure! Ferrets are far more adorable. And anyway, the turtle was half my brother's idea. He said I could use it, though, since I was the one with a sick obsession."

"What's your cat's name?" Sirius asked tentatively, as if worried about the answer. "Please tell me it's got nothing to do with McGonagall."

"Actually," Morrighan said with a grin, "her name is Hermione."

The men exchanged confused looks and shrugged.

"In her second year," Morrighan explained, "the trio made a Polyjuice Potion, quite successfully, I might add, except that Hermione accidently used a cat hair instead of a human hair and… well…"

"Oh, sweet Merlin," Remus muttered, eyes wide.

"Yeah," she said with a laugh. "You can imagine how that turned out. Bad year for her, really. It was only several months later when she got Petrified. Spent most of her year in the hospital wing, which is rather unfortunate. But that's not even the worst of my naming obsessions."

"Oh, do tell," Sirius pressed, "what's the worst?"

"I wanted to have four sons," Morrighan said, "back when I thought I'd get married and have kids, and I was planning to name them after the Marauders."

"Even Peter?" Remus gasped.

"Yeah," Morrighan said sheepishly, avoiding looking at Sirius's stunned and upset face. "I really like the name Peter. So I was willing to use it despite the fact that it was Pettigrew. But once I decided I was never having children, my dad told me it was just as well."

"Why's that?" Remus asked.

"Because apparently he thought Remus and Sirius weren't good name choices for children in California in the twenty-first century," she said casually. "Sirius was the worst, he said. He reckoned they'd get beat up. So it's probably a good thing I'm not procreating, because I would have used the names anyway, I loved them that much."

The boys laughed and shook their heads.

"I'm not sure if I should be honored by your honoring us or insulted by your father's insinuation that my name isn't cool enough," Sirius barked out.

"Well, in a way," Remus said, "he's right. I imagine for Muggles they'd be very odd names indeed. She'd end up with juvenile delinquents on her hands."

"That's not so bad," Sirius reasoned. "I mean, I turned out all right!"

Remus and Morrighan exchanged a look, then laughed profusely, which made Sirius scowl.

"By the way, Moony," Sirius said slyly, "we've done up a division of labor, as far as teaching her goes. Here you go." He handed Remus the parchment on which he divided up her coursework. Remus raised his eyebrows.

"Well, Sirius, I see you're once again expecting me to pull half your weight in this venture," he muttered. "You probably have some sort of reason why I ought to do the majority of the work?"

"Absolutely!" Sirius said cheerily, setting about making hot chocolate. "You're smarter than me, and Morrighan here deserves the best!"

Remus looked as though he wanted to argue with Sirius, but couldn't find an argument strong enough to pull it off. He simply shrugged, gave Morrighan a helpless sort of smile, and turned accepted his cocoa without fuss.

"Well, all right, then," Remus finally said. "I'm afraid I'm not as available as Sirius, but I'll do what I can when I can and I'll do my best to be sure you're up to the standards of someone your age as soon as possible. I'm not sure how that's going to work out for Potions, of course, seeing as you won't be seeing very much of Severus."

"I think I'll be all right," Morrighan said thoughtfully. "I was always good at chemistry, provided I wasn't setting myself on fire…"

The men blinked at her. Morrighan explained the science of chemistry, the function of a Bunsen burner, and that fateful day in her high school chemistry class when she was far too drowsy and her lab partner decided to be less than helpful and she set herself on fire.

"Right," Remus muttered, before turning to Sirius. "When you teach her flame Charms, be extra careful not to burn down the house, attractive as that option may seem. It's really a bad idea and it would be bad taste to take advantage of her unfortunate history with fire."

Morrighan frowned and said, "You know, I'm still standing right here. I can hear everything you're saying."

"We know, love," Sirius said with a smirk. "Now, I think it's time for bed, for all of us, don't you?"

With smiling in spite of herself at the way Sirius held his hand out to her and unsure why, Morrighan nodded, took his hand, and allowed him to lead her upstairs to her room.

"I want you to take this one now they're gone," he said, showing her to a room next to his that had formerly housed Arthur and Molly and was incredibly large compared with where she had been staying. "As you can see, I took the liberty of having Remus move your things this evening. Is it all right?"

The size of the bed, the much smaller amount of stairs she had to climb, everything about the room was superior to her previous lodgings. Smiling and kissing him on the cheek she said, "It's perfect," and bid him good night.

"If you need anything, I'm just down the hall now," he said softly, kissing her on the forehead. "Don't hesitate to wake me."

He left her to herself and she found herself thinking as she changed into her nightclothes (having learned her lesson about sleeping half-clothed), Morrighan couldn't help but think about how right it felt to have Sirius hovering over her, kissing her forehead like that.


	5. Delicious Dark

The following night, after Sirius had spent the day teaching her as much about Charms as he could and asking her all about the friends she'd had back home, he had intended to give her an Astronomy lesson, but an unexpected visitor arrived.

"Miss Capilla," drawled Severus Snape. "I have been charged with the unfortunate task of teaching you Potions. Tonight I have come to take catalogue of what knowledge you may have, as Albus has told me that you already have some knowledge of our world. This will help me to understand what you need to be taught and how quickly we shall be able to progress."

Morrighan noted the snarl Sirius gave in Severus's direction, but she shot him a warning look at followed Severus to the kitchen, telling Sirius firmly that he was not, under any circumstances, allowed to enter the kitchen without her express permission. He pouted a bit, but it was a necessary precaution.

"Very well," Severus said, sitting down and taking out a quill and parchment. "What is aconite?"

Aconite… aconite… also known as wolfsbane…

"It's a poisonous plant."

"Anything else?"

She bit her lip. What else did she know about it?

"Um, it's also known as wolfsbane and, erm, monkshood. That's all I know."

He scribbled down some quick notes.

"What purpose does Acromantula venom serve in Potion-making?"

Acromantula venom. It was obviously very valuable and incredibly rare, or it wouldn't be such an expensive commodity that Professor Slughorn would be selling it on the black market in a year's time or so. But it's use?

"I don't know."

More scribbling.

"What are the ingredients of a basic Ageing Potion?"

"I don't know."

"What is the purpose of Wartcap Powder?"

"Oh!" she cried. Not only had she read about it, but she also had seen some of it in action not too long ago, when they were cleaning the house. "I'm not sure why anyone would want to use it," she admitted, "but I've seen it in action, it made Sirius's hand go all crusty and hard."

She noted the sneer that formed on his lips at the mention of Sirius, but was surprised to find that it melted away very soon after as he continued his interrogation.

"What are the ingredients of Amortentia?"

Now that was just a difficult question and she knew it. Harry had never even heard of Amortentia until he was sixteen. She bit her lip.

"I'm not entirely sure," she said, "but I do know that many love potions contain frozen Ashwinder eggs, so maybe that."

"Yes, it does," he said, nodding sharply. "What use does wormwood have in Potion-making?"

"Wormwood, wormwood," she muttered. "It's used in… Draught of Living Death."

He seemed impressed, which was good, because she knew Harry had been unable to answer that very question in his day of Potions.

"What are the ingredients of a Babbling Beverage?"

"I don't know."

"What is valerian?"

She bit her lip. Valerian. It was used in truth serums… its roots were, anyway. And roots typically meant…

"All I know is that it's a plant of some sort," she said, "because I know you use the roots in things."

They went on like that for three hours until she was ready to pound her head into the table. She was ashamed of the amount she didn't know, but Severus had seemed impressed with the amount she did know, and whenever she knew the answer to something, she was incredibly proud of herself. As she went on, he encouraged her to use the knowledge she had to try to guess the answers to more difficult questions, and she was getting better at it.

"Well," he said finally, setting down his quill, "I think that's enough to build a curriculum. I think you have potential, Miss Capilla. I do not say such things lightly. You should hope you do not disappoint me."

"Yes, s–"

She paused.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I'm not sure what to call you."

His lips curled a little into a sneer and he said, "Why would it be anything other than 'Professor' or 'sir'?"

It was her turn to smile a bit.

"Because," she said calmly, "I know so much about you that your students typically don't. Perhaps 'Half-Blood Prince' would suit your fancy better?"

He stiffened.

"I suppose," he hissed, "if it pleases you, you might call me Severus."

"Certainly," she said happily. "And I ask that you call me Morrighan."

For a moment, Severus sized her up, but then he nodded sharply, bid her good day, and left promptly.

Sirius wanted to do a full-body check for injuries, curses, and hexes, but Morrighan gave him an icy death look.

"Did you and Snivellus have a nice time?" he finally asked, following her into the kitchen. "You were only in here for hours on end. I hope you weren't fucking on the kitchen table. We eat there, you know."

"Don't you start that!" she cried, punching him pathetically in the chest, not even making him flinch. "Don't you dare! You know perfectly well we were working the whole time, as you were listening at the door. I know you were, don't even bother denying it!"

"I wasn't," he muttered.

"Yes you were!"

"I meant I wasn't denying," he growled. "Look, I understand you know all these things about everyone, and that's great for you, but the Snivellus I know… He'd love hurting me any way he could, and if that means through you I don't think he'd hesitate. I'm not going to let that happen!"

"What are you even on about?" Morrighan sighed, shaking her head incredulously. "You're talking absolute nonsense."

"Oh, am I?"

"Have you been drinking again?" she inquired, sniffing his breath a little.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he retorted, backing her into the kitchen table.

"Sirius," she snapped. "You wouldn't be saying any of this if you were sober."

She wasn't sure if that was true, but there was something imposing, threatening about him at that moment that she didn't like. He snarled and she could smell only a hint of firewhiskey on his breath. She had been sure, so sure, he would have smelt drenched in it, but she was finding it difficult to ignore the fact that he had her backed up against the very kitchen table he had just accused her of shagging Severus on. He leaned over her, his hands grasping the edge on either side of her torso, well and truly boxing her in.

"I don't want him touching you," he hissed. "I don't want him hurting you, taking advantage of the fact you can't leave the house to get what he wants. You deserve better than settling for that greasy git."

For a brief moment, Morrighan was flattered that Sirius was being so protective of her, but she reminded himself that his motives, sweet as they were, were not being enacted in a very sweet sort of way. Instead, he was being rather antagonistic, particularly with her, and she didn't appreciate being yelled at for not having done anything wrong. She placed her hands on his chest and pressed firmly, but she didn't have the strength to push him away from her.

"Sirius," she said softly, but firmly, "you're very close to me."

"I know," he muttered, eyes flashing. He was drunk. He must be drunk.

Before she could ask him to back away, to tell him she was uncomfortable (and yet, was she?), Remus walked into the room and sighed.

"Padfoot, shagging our guest on the kitchen table is not advised. Set out plates and I'll heat up some dinner."

Sirius's eyes flashed once more, but he backed away from Morrighan slowly and went about getting the plates from the cupboard. Morrighan shook her head, busying herself with making tea, distracting herself from Sirius's behavior. Ironically, Sirius seemed to have forgotten it already, acting as though absolutely nothing had occurred and that Remus had simply walked in on them playing a rousing game of charades. She would have sworn the man was bipolar, except she knew he wasn't. What exactly was going on in his brain, however, Morrighan wasn't quite sure how to diagnose. Perhaps it was some sort of result of his years of imprisonment, some sort of psychological growth deficiency.

But the very idea of attempting to diagnose him was absurd.

For one thing, she wasn't any kind of health professional. For another, she didn't know him well enough, didn't have the confidence to say whether or not he actually had a problem. Despite the fact that she had read all about him, she didn't really know him yet. He was still a bit of an enigma, and she suspected he always would be. Remus was more of the open-book type, but Sirius… Sirius was closed off.

Dinner was a quiet affair that night. Sirius addressed Remus, Morrighan addressed Remus, and Remus gritted his teeth and attempted to hold down the conversations, even merge them, despite the stubborn resistance of his companions.

"How were the lessons with Severus?" he asked Morrighan, curious, after quite a long bit of awkward eating. Sirius stiffened and Morrighan glared across the table at him.

"It was an interesting experience," she admitted. "I think I knew more than he expected, but not nearly as much as I would have liked. But I don't expect Potions will be my best subject, anyway, what with such irregular education in the subject."

Sirius – thankfully – bit his tongue and Remus nodded thoughtfully, asking her about Charms earlier in the day. It was during this portion of the conversation that Sirius was able to overcome whatever it was that had made him so disagreeable in the first place and have a proper discussion with Remus and Morrighan about the hilarity that was their Charms lesson. By the end of what had begun as an awkward, stiff dinner, the three of them were laughing, swapping tales, and just generally enjoying themselves.

Lessons went well, and she found that despite Sirius's insistence that Remus was the one she wanted helping her, Sirius was actually a very capable and talented teacher himself. She also learned that she was rather more skilled magically than she had anticipated, although Hermione would always beat her in every subject, she was sure.

One night, Remus was out on Order business (a.k.a. grocery shopping for Grimmauld Place), and Sirius and Morrighan had several hours to themselves. After all, they'd made him quite a long list: typical food, plus chocolate, cakes, several types of alcohol… They wondered how long he'd go on getting the things on the list without going through and weeding out the things they didn't actually need, and they were having quite a good laugh about it in the study.

"My bet is he'll get the chocolate," Morrighan reasoned, "because he'll want some too, but once he gets to the third type of alcohol, he'll start to get suspicious."

Sirius laughed.

"So no vodka?"

"That's my guess," Morrighan shrugged. "But then, he was a bit out of sorts today, so maybe we'll just get the whole list and luck out."

"It's lucky in more ways than one, you know," Sirius muttered, moving a little closer as if he didn't realize this was what he was doing.

"Oh?" Morrighan smirked, raising an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Getting Moony out of the house, of course," Sirius pointed out softly, grinning his charming grin. "Getting him out of our hair."

"And that benefits us how?" Morrighan laughed. "What can we possibly do with him gone that we can't with him here?"

"Drinking games, of course!" Sirius cried enthusiastically, leaping to his feet, taking Morrighan by the hand, and dragging her up the stairs to his bedroom. "We're out of alcohol in the kitchen, yes, but I've got a secret stash up here for special occasions. Actually," he said with a bark of laughter as he dug around his things, "this is the same stash from my school days. I couldn't take it with me when I ran away and my parents obviously never found it. I doubt they wanted to be in my room for any reason. I suspect it's aged nicely."

Morrighan laughed and sat down on his bed, smiling at the dusty bottle of firewhiskey. Sirius sat beside her, opened the bottle, and took a swig.

"Mmm, delicious," he sighed. "Stronger than usual, just as suspected. Have a taste, love," he whispered, passing it to her.

"How can you tell it's stronger?" Morrighan asked, eyeing the bottle curiously before taking a drink. "Tastes the same to me."

"It's the color," he said, pouring them each a small glass. "It's typically amber, but this is a sort of delicious dark brown, much darker than normal. It darkens with age and gets stronger at the same time. That's when you know you've got a really quality firewhiskey on your hands, or in your glass, rather." He raised his glass. "To shopping lists and the appearance of freedom!"

Morrighan laughed and raised hers.

"To misfits and the glorious _Quibbler_!"

"Cheers to that, love," he chuckled, referencing the story Arthur had brought back from the Ministry about Sirius actually being Stubby Boardman.

"So," he asked after they downed their third shots, "what did you do in your spare time back home? Anything we'd be able to accomplish here?"

Morrighan shook her head.

"I used to write about your world, rewrite things, add stuff… Mostly romantic pairings. I wrote mostly conventional stuff, or make up characters for you guys to be involved with, but I read just about anything, and you'd be surprised with some of the people you guys got paired up with sometimes."

"Like who?" Sirius asked eagerly, sitting up straighter, his face so close she could taste the firewhiskey on his breath.

"Well," she muttered thoughtfully, "Remus and Ginny… Remus and Severus…" Sirius gagged. "Remus and Harry… Remus and Hermione. Actually, I rather like that one."

"Me too, does he end up with her?"

"No," Morrighan chuckled.

"Who did they put me with?"

"Well, a lot of people make up girls to pair you with," she said honestly. "Usually, they based them off themselves, so it was like living out their fantasies in that way. Some people pair you with Remus, or Lily, or even Bellatrix, actually."

Sirius spluttered.

"_Excuse me?_" he hissed. "Remus… No. That's just… no. And Lily, while she was incredibly attractive, I never ever even thought of her as anything but James's girl, even when telling James that maybe it wasn't ever actually going to pan out. Plus, she was _way_ too bossy. Nice, but when she wanted to be she was hell to deal with. But _Bellatrix_?"

Morrighan giggled, leaning even closer to him.

"Actually, I rather liked reading that one," she admitted. "A lot of people suggested that the hatred between the pair of you was so intense that there had to be more to the story. Maybe there is, I don't know, but I do know that it was incredibly sexy to read."

"Really?" Sirius asked, eyebrows raised. "I would have thought everything to do with my cousin would be disgusting and revolting."

"Is she not attractive?" Morrighan countered. "Be honest, not from her personality, but if you only had a picture to look at, was she not attractive, before Azkaban?"

"Well, I guess she was," he conceded. "Black family looks and all that. Still. What was this like?"

"Usually very aggressive," Morrighan shrugged. "Blood shed, pleasure and pain mixed, and a lot of self-hatred and guilt. When it was done badly it was atrocious, but when it was done right…" she smirked. "Oh, it was blissful."

"Speaking of blissful," he muttered, leaning even more into her, "tell me about your love life a bit more."

Morrighan frowned.

"What is there to know? I've told you I'm bad at picking men and it's been less than spectacular–"

"What has?" he pressed. "The sex? The foreplay?"

She could feel a blush in her cheeks that had nothing to do with her four shots of firewhiskey. These questions, these incredibly personal questions… well, she just couldn't figure out why he was asking them. He probably wouldn't have done, sober, but here they were. And the answers, they were just so embarrassing.

"All of it," she sighed, not even realizing that she was now resting her head on his shoulders. "Kissing is boring, foreplay is awkward, and even when the sex doesn't hurt it doesn't feel good. All of it always felt like going through the motions, all the time. I guess maybe that's what it's supposed to be like, but nobody ever says that. They always talk about it like it's some magical experience. I don't know, my mother said it would be with the right guy, but maybe that's just what they all say."

Sirius shrugged.

"Well, obviously I can't speak from the female perspective, but kissing isn't always bad, foreplay isn't always awkward, and I've had very few sexual experiences when both parties weren't completely satisfied, so it seems to me that you're just getting duds, darling. We'll have to fix this."

Morrighan sighed.

"Once again, Sirius, I'm locked in a house. When am I supposed to get sexual experience?"

It was then that Remus walked in on their conversation, frowning down at the mostly-empty bottle of firewhiskey and then glaring up at the drunken pair of them.

"Separate," he snapped, and they did so, on command. "Padfoot, why on earth did you put all that alcohol on the list if you had firewhiskey up here?"

"I only had the one bottle, Moony," Sirius said, hiccupping slightly and grinning in what he probably thought was a winning way. "And that was all Morrighan's idea. She's quite a little prankster, you know. She would have been a great Marauder if she'd had balls. I mean," he turned to Morrighan, or rather, to a spot just to the left of her, "I'm guessing you don't have balls. It's too bad, really, they're lots of fun. It's okay, though. I'm sure if you did have balls, you'd have an absolutely fabulous pair… big, round, and–"

"And that conversation ends right there," Remus sighed. "Bed, both of you. Now. don't forget, we've got Molly over for dinner tomorrow. We'll need to make sure everything's in order."

That was code for the latest Order meeting, which Molly was arriving early to in order to make not only dinner for the meeting, but also more reserves for the trio living at Grimmauld Place.

Morrighan didn't remember it the next morning, but Remus had led her back to her bedroom and locked the door for her, just in case Sirius, in all his drunken glory, got bored in the middle of the night. She didn't think too deeply on what Remus meant by that, but instead drifted into a marvelously peaceful sleep.


	6. Protection

At breakfast, an owl arrived for Sirius from Harry. Morrighan knew what it said: It held news of Harry's scar hurting when Umbridge touched him. She also snatched up the paper and skimmed the headlines. Sturgis in prison… No sign of Sirius's name anywhere. She grinned.

"What are you so happy about?" Remus asked, frowning. "Sturgis has been chucked in Azkaban and Harry's scar is hurting him. What is there to smile about?"

"Oh, yes," Morrighan said, sobering her expression slightly. "I was simply happy over what _wasn't_ in the paper that had been during the book."

"What's that?" Sirius asked, straightening up as he tossed aside the letter from Harry.

"Well, in the book there was headline that you were spotted in London, that that's where you were hiding. It's not here." She grinned proudly. "Lucius Malfoy didn't see you at King's Cross because I kept you here. You're safer than you would have otherwise been."

Remus blinked in surprise and Sirius smiled a little and said, "Well, I'm glad you're pleased, then. I take it you know all about this letter, then?"

"Naturally," she said, pouring herself a glass of water. Despite the change in scenery, it was still her go-to beverage. She had never liked milk, and pumpkin juice was, in her words, 'disgusting and unnatural'.

"I don't suppose you've got advice on how I should answer it?"

Morrighan bit her lip. She knew how he would, and it would certainly turn out fine, but she didn't want to guide him to it.

"How do you think you ought to?" she said. "I'll tell you if you're on the right track when you make up your mind."

He sighed.

"Always making me think, love. How incredibly unfair. Well," he said thoughtfully, "I suppose writing to him is out of the question. One must be careful about what's put in writing right now."

"Very true," she encouraged.

"I guess…" Sirius frowned. "Moony, do you think we can firecall him?"

"How are you going to set a time if you can't write him?" Remus said, clearly skeptical.

"I could always poke in to see if the common room's clearing every half-hour or so."

"Risky," Remus muttered, clearly not liking the idea.

"Morrighan?" Sirius said with a grin, obviously relishing the fact that Remus disapproved of his daring plan.

"Sorry, Remus," Morrighan said sheepishly, "but it's exactly what he does in the book, and it works out fine."

Remus sighed and stirred his tea pointlessly.

"I suppose it would be too much to ask for reason and caution to ever win out with the pair of you," he muttered. "By the way, Sirius, I took the funds from that little shopping expedition from your funds. I figured it was better than having you whine about anything I didn't purchase for you, and saved me from bankrupting myself for your drinking habits. Speaking of, I think you really ought to back off the alcohol for a while."

Morrighan sniggered, causing both men to look up at her questioningly.

"Oh, I just think it's rather funny that you tell him to not drink as much after purchasing him nearly fifteen bottles of alcoholic beverages."

Remus winced and said, "Yes, well, I bought them before I witnessed his drunken behavior last night."

They all laughed at that, and Morrighan knew they wouldn't be repeating the episode for a few days, at least. Remus began working with her on Ancient Runes that morning, Arithmancy in the afternoon. There was a quick, rather uneventful meeting and dinner, and then Remus forced Sirius to finally give her an Astronomy lesson before sticking his head in the fireplace.

"All right," Sirius said, leading her out on a small balcony on the fifth floor. "This is as good of a view as we're going to get. I apologize for the London air, love. We'll mostly be looking at pictures in your texts, but if you are going to practice making star charts, you need to see the real thing. Now, point out something familiar."

Morrighan frowned. She knew very little astronomy, and the bit she did know, she'd learned with an earlier sky. Her usual viewpoints were off.

"Well," she muttered, "I think that's Cygnus. And… that mean's that's Aquila."

"Good," he said with a sharp nod. "Do you know what any of the stars are called?"

"I haven't got a fucking clue," she said with a laugh, which he returned.

"Well," he sighed, frowning up at the sky, "let's start with the constellations you know." He stood behind her, resting his head on her shoulder so that they were getting about the same angle of vision. "Cygnus first," he whispered in her ear. "Your biggest stars are Deneb and Albireo." As he said them, he pointed them out, first with his hand, then lifting her arm to point at them, so he knew she knew what he was pointing at. It was a good idea, actually, or would have been if she had been able to focus on anything other than the sensations his body being so close to hers was producing. She found herself trying very hard not to shiver rather than looking at the stars in question. She obviously wasn't very successful in her venture because his smooth voice whispered, "You all right, love?"

"Yeah," she forced out, knowing she sounded less than convincing. "Just a bit chilly out here. It's not California weather, that's for sure."

"Well, that's no good," he said softly in her ear, causing her to shiver even more violently. To her shock and horror, he wrapped his arms around her. "I'll keep you warm."

She couldn't smell alcohol on his breath. In fact, Remus had hidden all of the alcohol from the pair of them, so she knew for a fact he hadn't drank a drop since their escapades the night before. On the other hand, she hadn't had a thing to drink, either. So why on earth were they getting so close… so familiar?

But she couldn't deny, it felt very good.

"Don't you have to talk to Harry?" she whispered. "It's getting sort of late. We can do this another time."

She wasn't sure if by "this" she meant the Astronomy lesson, or Sirius's arms wrapped around her body, but if she had really thought about it, she would have decided that she didn't mind whichever it was.

The following morning, Morrighan took a deep breath and opened the paper. Educational Degree 23, right there, in front of her, declaring Dolores Umbridge the High Inquisitor of Hogwarts. She sighed heavily and flung the paper away from her.

"What's this?" Sirius asked, frowning at the paper over his cup of tea, but not picking it up. "You look angrier at the paper than usual. No… not angry. That's a bad word. You look… resigned in a very vicious sort of way? Ah, well, you know what I mean."

Actually, Morrighan had very little idea what he meant by that, but she was used to feeling that way around Sirius by then. Of course, more so when he was drunk, but she didn't actually have any proof that he wasn't. Eight in the morning probably meant nothing to him.

"Umbridge has now been declared 'Hogwarts High Inquisitor'," Morrighan snarled, using air quotes, which Sirius seemed to find amusing as he digested her words.

"What's a 'Hogwarts High Inquisitor' and why has it got you all worked up, darling?" he said with a little smirk, coping her gesture.

With a glare that only made him chuckle at her, she said, "It means that she's inspecting all the teachers, has the power to put them on probation, even fire them. She's taking over, and it's only going to get worse for a long while yet."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing," Sirius said, trying to sound like Remus, being all reasonable and such. "She could fire Snivellus. That'd do everyone a favor."

Morrighan was itching to tell him how that would _not_ be doing _anyone_ a favor, but she bit her tongue hard for a moment before saying, "Don't be so sure of that, Sirius. Don't judge him so harshly. And anyway, she won't fire him. She will fire a couple of people, though. But like I said, it's only going to get worse for a while. This doesn't seem so invasive or unreasonable, but neither did Hitler, at first, and then he killed six million innocent people while everyone was looking the other way."

Sirius nodded gravely for a moment, looking down at his tea as he stirred in more sugar and a bit of firewhiskey before looking up at her solemnly and saying, "Who's Hitler?"

With a sigh, Morrighan began a two-hour lesson of basic modern Muggle history for Sirius's benefit, with a heavy emphasis on the Holocaust, which happened to be her specialty.

"How many years did you say you've studied the Hollowcot?"

"Holocaust."

"That's what I said."

"Oh, I don't know… About ten."

"So you've been studying a horrific mass murdering campaign for half your life?"

"Well, when you put it like that…"

"Yeah, it's fucking morbid, love. You are a sick, sick person."

Morrighan smirked.

"Says the guy who joined a war a seventeen and laughed about it."

He cocked his head curiously, looking so very much like a puppy in that moment that Morrighan had the urge to scratch him behind the ears, but bit her lip and managed to restrain herself as he said, "How did you know I laughed when we joined the Order?"

"Lucky guess," she said honestly. "Seemed like what you would do."

"Good guess," he said. "Want some firewhiskey?"

"Sirius," Morrighan said with a snort, not altogether convinced she ought to turn him down, "You do realize it's not even lunch yet, and that if Moony finds you drinking again he's going to infest your bed with fleas."

Sirius winced visibly, knowing that it wasn't just an empty threat from Remus. Apparently, Remus had given him flea infestations before, to make a point. It seemed, though, that the fleas were worth it for firewhiskey, because Sirius kept on pouring more and more into his tea.

"How was Harry?" Morrighan asked, knowing perfectly well how Harry was, but not wanting an awkward silence to fall between her and Sirius as he continued risking his luck with the alcohol.

He shrugged.

"He's not great, but you knew that. I think he'll be all right. Oh, but," he looked at her nervously. "Umbridge… she's not a Death Eater or possessed or anything like that?"

Morrighan gave him a wry smirk and said, "No, but she does happen to be pure evil. But if you're referring to his scar hurting, that was coincidental timing. She didn't cause it."

He nodded thoughtfully, mixing more firewhiskey into his tea.

"You know," he sighed, "this is really frustrating."

"What?" she said, trying to keep from grinning, but only succeeded in making her lips twitch a bit. "Having trouble getting the right tea-to-alcohol consistency?"

He gave out a short bark of laughter and shook his head.

"No, it's not that. It's… well, you know all this stuff, you could tell me how it all works out, answer so many questions, but you can't, can you? Because I'd go and do something stupid and change something and then maybe everyone would die and the earth would burn in a fiery storm or something."

She snorted.

"Well," she said dryly, "of all the faults you do have, thinking too little of your potential is certainly not among them." They laughed together for a moment, but she sighed heavily. "Yes, it's frustrating. You have no idea the things I want to tell you, the things I want to change… but… I can't." Morrighan bit her lip nervously. "Actually," she muttered, "I'm going to try to change something… just one thing."

His head jerked to look up at her with nervous eyes.

"What thing?"

She looked into his gray eyes, wanting so badly to reach out and hug him, to tell him that she would save his life even if it ruined everything else, but somehow it didn't feel right to say it out loud, not yet. The treat was so distant, so unreal even to her at this point, that she knew that if she told him too soon, he wouldn't heed the warning when the time came. Sirius lived too much on impulses.

Fear filled her. Would she be strong enough to overcome his impulses? Morrighan didn't even realize that she was crying until Sirius pulled her into a tight hug and wiped the tear off her cheek.

"Shh," he said softly. "It's going to be okay. We'll fix whatever it is. Everything's going to be okay."

She gripped his shirt tightly, inhaling his firewhiskey-laced scent, relishing the warmth that radiated off of him, reminding herself that he was there, he was alive, and that she still had a chance of saving him. She had time. They were months away from the event in question. Sirius still had a chance.

"What do you say we do a bit of studying?" he whispered gently in her ear. "Let's make Moony proud and speechless. He's funny when he's speechless."

Morrighan giggled and they spent the day working on her studies, including the topics Sirius had brushed off on Remus, and as if sensing her heightened sense of fear, Sirius spent much of the day holding her, cuddling her, and physically comforting her. She never told her what was wrong, what it was that she was so afraid of, so dreading, but he seemed to realize that the physical comfort was something that helped, so he kept it up all day.

Remus was well and truly speechless when he arrived back at the end of the day and Morrighan had learned seven new spells, eight new plants, five new creatures (although Sirius had been mixed up on a couple of them, but Remus set them right quickly), and a new constellation. Sirius was right, it was funny, seeing Remus trying to decide if they were teasing him or not. Eventually, he settled for telling Morrighan that he was very pleased and telling Sirius that he was very shocked and let it go at that. He even let Sirius do some supervised drinking that night at dinner, he was so impressed with their progress.

That night, Morrighan woke suddenly and it took her a moment to realize that Sirius had shaken her awake. She was shivering and sweating and his eyes were obviously full of concern, even in the darkness.

"Are you all right, love? You were screaming. I thought maybe something in the house decided to attack you, but then I saw you thrashing like mad and it seemed best to wake you up. Bad dream?"

Morrighan tried to remember what it was she had been dreaming about as she blinked herself awake.

And then it came to her in flashes… A dark room… The smell of alcohol on a man's breath… No, not a man. Legally being an adult didn't make a boy a man. Someone who pulled the kind of stunts he had with her was not a man, he was a coward.

Once again, she didn't realize she was crying until Sirius sat down beside her, wrapping her tightly in his arms and gently wiping a tear off her cheek.

She found herself clutching him tightly, telling him in a fearful whisper of everything that had happened that night… it hadn't been so long ago, only a matter of months, but somehow it felt like a different lifetime and like the boy was right behind her waiting for her all at once.

"Shh," he soothed, rocking her gently. "It's all right love. I've got you. You're going to be fine. I'm right here and it's just me. I'm not going to let anything happen to you. You're safe with me."

Morrighan knew those words weren't simply meant to calm her, but that he meant each one with every fiber of his being. He was going to protect her as best he could, whether because he truly cared about her or because it felt like the only way of doing anything useful, didn't matter. Morrighan felt safer with Sirius's arms around her. Strange it was that not long ago she was thinking of ways to protect him.

When she calmed down, Morrighan couldn't have said, but she found herself waking up the following morning wrapped safely and comfortably in the arms of Sirius Black, the pair of them tucked under her sheets, but just as innocently entwined as they had been the night before as he had calmed her from her nightmare.

He smelled delicious. Without really thinking about it, she nuzzled against his chest and fell back asleep for a couple of hours, not really fully aware of her surroundings, but thinking that she might have felt his hands running through her hair, gently massaging her scalp as she drifted back and forth between the worlds of slumber and waking.

She thought she had imagined it, though, when she finally woke up for good that morning and found herself alone. For a split second, she thought she had dreamed the whole thing, that he hadn't come into her room at all, but then she inhaled and smelled his scent all around her. And then she rolled over and saw his slippers on the floor by her bed.

He had been there, and for whatever reason, he had left in such a hurry while she was asleep that he had left his slippers at her bedside. Morrighan wasn't sure why, but this knowledge brought a smile to her lips and she lay back on the pillows, drinking in his lingering scent and wishing she could remember the wonderful, delicious, dark dream she'd been having just moments before waking… Whatever it was, that scent made her feel just inches from unlocking it.


	7. Educational Decree Number 24

Even the most beautiful, wonderful things weren't meant to last, or at least not to go on as they were forever. Beauty itself was a perfect concept, but it could only be achieved in the real world for temporary windows of time. Reality could only take so much perfection at once, and Morrighan's lovely little life with Sirius, playing games and drinking more than she'd done in a long time could only last so long.

On the fifth of October, Hogwarts students had their first trip to Hogsmeade, and that night Mundungus Fletcher reported of a secret meeting with about two dozen students at the Hog's Head, rallying around Harry as their leader in a new Defense group.

"Excellent!" Sirius said with a smile planted across his face, and Morrighan couldn't help but smile with him, though she struggled to remain as neutral as possible. Smiling with Sirius had become such a habit, though…

"But it's rather dangerous," Molly argued. "Don't you dare encourage them! Even if you have the right to encourage Harry, you know Ron will follow him, and he really ought not to."

"Molly," Morrighan said softly, "this is a decision Ron seems to be making without any help outside of Hermione and Harry. I'd let him go. He won't be a child much longer, you know."

Molly looked ready to explode at Morrighan, but Arthur put his hand gently on her arm and she restrained herself.

In truth, Morrighan was slightly terrified of the Weasley matriarch. She was far more imposing in real life than Morrighan had ever expected or pictured while reading the books, and despite the descriptions that Molly Weasley was not a woman to cross, somehow Morrighan had trusted her own bravery to negate such truths. Somehow, she'd managed to hold her ground up to that point, but not without inwardly quaking in fear.

The implications were discussed thoroughly and well, and Morrighan found herself having to remind herself less and less that she was supposed to keep her mouth shut, and she simply enjoyed watching the people at the table around her. For instance, she noticed that Remus and Tonks were already playing a subtle round of the looking game across the kitchen, and Sirius liked to make silly faces for her to try to get Morrighan to laugh when Albus was talking about very serious things. Thankfully, he was unsuccessful, but she had to truly struggle several times not to burst out with laughter.

Despite her burning desire to stop him, Morrighan allowed Sirius to send Harry a reply by Hedwig, one she knew Umbridge was going to intercept, and two days later they found that all student organizations had been disbanded at Hogwarts, which meant that Umbridge knew of the meeting in Hogsmeade, somehow or another. She did, after all, have a plan to ensure his safety, whether he liked it or not.

"Sirius," she said that night as he and Remus were settling down to dinner, "I have something to say and you're not going to like it, but I need you to do something for me."

He raised an eyebrow and slowly asked, "And what exactly is it that you think I'm not going to like, love?"

She bit her lip, working up her resolve before saying, "I need you to let me be the one to talk to Harry tonight. Please."

Morrighan was right, not liking the request was written all over Sirius's face. She was sure that the first words out of his mouth would be outright refusal, but instead he demanded explanation.

"And why would I do that?"

"Because Umbridge read your letter to him," she said calmly. "In the book, it was a very near miss, her catching you. I don't want to take that chance with your life, Sirius. She doesn't know who I am. She'll be confused. It should buy us more time and keep your whereabouts in further question. Please, don't make Harry's life any harder, at the very least. Let me talk to them. I know everything you're going to say, anyway."

He looked as though he was struggling deeply with the idea, both knowing it was a good plan and wanting desperately to be a part of the action, have some role in the adventure. She decided to press him just a little more.

"Please?" she said softly, looking up at him with the look that she had used to bring down many a proud person in their day, her father in particular. Sirius bit the inside of his cheek, attempting like a fool to take the look on directly, and he fell quickly as a result. With a heavy sigh, he gave a sharp nod.

"If it means that much to you, I guess, just… just tell them–"

"I know," she said with a smile. "I know what I need to say."

Sirius seemed rather anxious all day, and Morrighan wondered if he was regretting his decision to let her take his place without a fight. She knew he wanted to talk with Harry, but it was safer this way, better if Umbridge didn't see him or even get a chance to try and catch him. She knelt by the fireplace later that night, shivering a little. Remus had gone over the mechanics of the type of call she would be doing, but the idea of sticking her head in a fireplace was still a bit disconcerting.

Taking a deep breath, she looked down at the fire.

"You'll be fine," said Sirius's voice kindly from behind her. "It's only scary for a minute."

She gave him a grateful smile and tossed the Floo Powder into the flames, saying, "Gryffindor Common Room!" as she stuck her head into the now-emerald fire.

She looked around the nearly empty room for the trio, and heard Ron's voice call, "Morrighan!"

Morrighan turned her head to find Harry whipping around to look at her.

"Hi," she said with a sigh of relief.

"Hi," chorused the trio, clearly confused. They came and knelt down in front of her, Crookshanks coming over to investigate the curiosity.

"Snuffles is fine," Morrighan said quickly. "I just happen to know that at some point in this conversation, it will better that he isn't the one with his head in the fireplace, but you'll see what I mean when we get there and I'd rather not disrupt things more than I have to. Anyway, how are things?"

"Not very good," Harry said, "but you already know that the Ministry's forced through another decree, which means no Quidditch–"

" – Or secret defense groups," Morrighan added with a knowing smile.

They blinked at her.

"Do they know?" Harry said quietly, and Morrighan took 'they' to mean 'Sirius and Remus'.

"The whole Order knows," Morrighan said with a chuckle. "And I didn't even tell them. You didn't choose the best of meeting places…"

"Well, it's better than the Three Broomsticks!" Hermione said indignantly. "That's always packed with people–"

"Which makes it far more difficult for a careful listener to overhear," Morrighan said gently. "And a lot less conspicuous to have a couple dozen students suddenly gathered."

"Who overheard us?" Harry demanded.

"Mundungus," Morrighan admitted. "He was the witch under the veil."

"That was Mundungus?" Harry mused, stunned. "What was he doing in the Hog's Head?"

"Keeping an eye on you," Morrighan sighed. "But you could have figured that yourself."

"I'm still being followed?" Harry asked angrily.

"Of course you are," Morrighan laughed. "And at this point, Sirius would have said 'and just as well, isn't it, if the first thing you're going to do on your weekend off is organize an illegal defense group', but he says it in a proud sort of way."

"Why was Dung hiding from us?" asked Ron. "We'd've liked to've seen him."

"Ah, well, he was banned from the Hog's Head a very long time ago," Morrighan explained. "And Ab's got a long memory. The spare Invisibility Cloak was lost when Sturgis got arrested, so Dung's been dressing as a witch quite a bit… Anyway… Ron – Sirius and I have sworn to pass on a message from your mother."

"Oh yeah?" Ron said nervously.

"She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defense Against the Dark Arts group. She says you'll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worried about that right now. She also" – Morrighan looked at the other two – "advises Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over either of them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart. She would have written all this to you, but if the owl had been intercepted you'd all have been in real trouble, and she can't say it herself because she's on duty tonight."

"On duty doing what?" said Ron quickly.

"Nice try, Ron. Order business, I'm not about to spill the beans before they ought to be spilled," Morrighan responded with a smirk. "So I've become your messenger and you need to make sure to tell her I passed it all on, because I don't think she trusts Sirius and me as far as she can throw the pair of us."

There was an awkward sort of pause while Ron fingered a hole in the hearthrug.

"So you want me to say I'm not going to take part in the defense group?" he muttered.

"Absolutely not!" Morrighan cried. "It's a great idea, and Sirius agrees!"

"You do?" said Harry eagerly.

"Of course!" Morrighan cried. "You can't just let Umbridge win, Harry!"

"But – last term all anyone did was tell me to be careful and not take risks–"

"Last year someone inside the castle was trying to kill you, but right now the real threat is outside those walls, and none of us are safe. Actually, ironically there's no one safer than Sirius and me right now. But honestly, your mum doesn't realize this, Ron, but you'll all need to know how to really defend yourselves a lot sooner than any of you think."

"And what if we do get expelled?" Hermione asked.

"Hermione, this whole thing was your idea!" Harry said incredulously.

"I know it was… I just wondered what Morrighan has to say," Hermione said with a shrug.

"Well, Sirius says better to be expelled and able to defend yourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue, but don't worry too much about it, Hermione."

"Hear, hear," Harry and Ron said eagerly.

"So, have you thought about meeting places much yet?"

"Well, that's a bit of a problem we're having at the moment," Harry admitted.

Morrighan bit her lip, and then gave them an apologetic smile.

"Well, to be honest, I know where you'll be meeting, but it's better if you get it from the original source, because I'm not sure you'd be able to find it off my limited knowledge. Just know you'll come up with something soon."

"Well, that's good to know," Hermione said with a smile. "How are things on your end, Morrighan?"

"Oh, well, they've been teaching me loads. I was just reading the other day about the Goblin Rebellion of–"

She froze, hearing the sound of something foreign breaking in on their conversation. It was time.

"It's time," she said, turning to look at the brick, fear filling her heart as she saw the stubby little hand making its way toward her.

Before they could ask what she meant, Morrighan retreated from the fireplace, panting, her heart racing, shaking with adrenaline and fear.

"Are you all right, love?" Sirius said, leaping up from his seat, rushing to her side and wrapping her up in a gentle hug. "What happened?"

"Umbridge," she sighed, burying her face in his chest. "Almost got me, but I got away. Better me than you, anyway."

"Quit saying that," he snapped. "You're not allowed to say stuff like that."

"Why not?" she sighed. "It's the truth. Without me, things will go on as they were, but if something were to happen to you… Harry wouldn't be able to stand it, and Remus would truly be alone."

"But if something were to happen to you," Sirius whispered softly, sadly, "what would happen to me?"

She wasn't sure what he meant by that, if he somehow knew she was doing whatever she could to keep him from the fate coming his way, or if there was some other meaning behind his words.

"You've kept me sane," he sighed after a minute. "If you weren't here, giving me something to do with my days, I'd go absolutely mad in this place, locked up all the time. I mean, it's still a prison, but sometimes it feels a bit less like a prison because I share it with you."

Morrighan didn't know how to respond to that, or even if it was wise to, knowing she might accidentally give away some future event when she was overcome with emotion and not thinking logically.

Because the truth of the matter was, if it saved Sirius, Morrighan would absolutely sacrifice her life in whatever world she had to. It was hard enough to read his death, or watch it on a film, but after becoming so close to him, she knew that for the first time in her life, she had met someone whose death would truly cut her to the core.

"You make me think a bit of Lily," he said softly, "but different. I mean, the hair and the eyes, obviously… but you're smart and caring and… I don't know, I guess I'm starting to realize how James so quickly fell for someone. I already can't imagine my life without you."

Morrighan froze, eyes wide, glad he couldn't see her face. Did he mean what she thought he meant?

For a split second, Morrighan thought about trying to come up with some clever way of coaxing his meaning out of him, but she wasn't clever. Well, she was intelligent, but not really when it came to interpersonal wit and cleverness and the like. If she were, she wouldn't have had such horrible results from her relationships, even friendships. So despite her burning desire to know what he meant, she decided it was better to let him explain himself in his own time, in his own way than to try to divine his meaning then and there, probably wrongly.

That night, she had another nightmare, but she woke herself very quickly into it. Looking around the dark of her room, she was sure that there was something in the darkness, watching her, looking sinisterly at her in her vulnerable loneliness, aware of how terrified she was in that moment of everything she couldn't see and understand. In spite of her attempts to calm herself, she shivered and felt tears beginning to pool in her eyes, and they would have blurred her vision if she could have seen anything in the first place.

On instinct, she did the only thing that seemed right at that time. Morrighan lit her wand, which did nothing to remedy the situation, merely casting eerie shadows on the cold, lonely room. She shivered once more and leapt out of bed, rushing down the hall as swiftly and quietly as she could manage, her feet barely touching the carpeted hall as she went.

As softly and gently as she could manage, Morrighan inched open Sirius's door. Her body instantly relaxed as she watched him sleeping peacefully in his bed, like some sort of angel. She felt suddenly safe just at the sight of him, like nothing could touch her if he was there. Morrighan teetered there at the doorway of his room for several minutes, on the edge of entering the room, but feeling as though she ought not. Still, she absolutely couldn't leave. She couldn't go back to the empty, lonely, angry darkness of her own room. So she simply lingered there, not quite sure what to do.

Finally, she heard his voice, soft and amused, ringing out over the semi-darkness.

"Come on in, love, but don't just stand there shining that thing at me or neither of us is getting any sleep tonight."

A little sheepishly, Morrighan crept forward toward his bed, where she could see him open one eye and grin sleepily at her.

"Another nightmare, darling?"

Even more embarrassed, Morrighan simply nodded, and sat down after he patted the bed beside him.

"Light off and come 'ere," he groaned, taking her then unlit wand from her hand, tossing it beside his on his bedside table, and pulling her against him so that they were curled up together. "It's okay, love," he sighed into her ear. "I've got you. You're going to be just fine."

For several long minutes that Morrighan wished would have been longer, she lay awake, drinking in the delicious scent of both Sirius and his bed, which was like a more concentrated version of his scent. The incredible calm that scent gave her was addictive, and she began to wonder what Sirius would say if she were to simply just start sleeping in his bed, just to be closer to that scent.

She slowly drifted toward peaceful sleep in his arms, easier and deeper than that which she had achieved before her nightmare that night, but before she did, an already-sleeping Sirius muttered something into her neck.

It sounded an awful lot like, "I love you," but one can never be sure about these things.

And after all, he was already asleep. He could have thought she was anyone, anyone in the world, living or dead.

Still, it made her dreams just that much better thinking for a brief moment before falling into them that he might be talking to her.


	8. Kiss Me

**A/N: This is a fluff chapter. I apologize. I CAN'T HELP IT. I wrote this during my history class last semester and loved it so much I just had to put it in. If you're a music fan, you might enjoy this. Otherwise, you may find it annoying. There is a VERY SMALL plot development toward the end, so if you don't like it, you can skip to the end. Also, for those of you who can tell me what the Gary Oldman joke is in this, you'll get a shoutout next chapter!**

**-J**

Two days later found Morrighan and Sirius sitting together in the kitchen, eating breakfast that Remus had made just before he ran out the door to run errands and take care of some Order business, saying he would probably not be back for hours.

"Alone today," Sirius quipped. "We should–"

"If you say play wizard's chess, Exploding Snap, Gobstones, or any sort of drinking or card game, I'm not speaking to you the rest of the day," Morrighan said coolly over her cup of tea.

Sirius pouted.

"Don't tell me you want to study."

"No," Morrighan sighed. "I'm just bored of all the same stuff every time we're alone. Can't we do something different?"

"Like what?" he asked, stirring sugar and firewhiskey into his tea. "What did you do with your friends?"

"We'd go out," Morrighan sighed. "We'd watch movies, go shopping, dress up, and my best friends and I would sing our favorite songs."

Sirius perked up.

"You sing?" She nodded. "Are you good?"

"I'll let you decide," she laughed. "Do you sing?"

He grinned and said, "I'll let you decide."

As soon as they finished breakfast, they went to the drawing room and started to plan their day.

"All right," said Sirius. "You go dress up, I'll find some wine, and we meet back here in twenty minutes."

"Wine is bad for the voice," Morrighan said with a giggle.

"But good for the ears," he said with a wink. "Twenty minutes, off you go."

Morrighan dashed off, put on her highest heels, and an emerald green dress Tonks had bought her. She put on a dash of eyeliner and ran back to the drawing room as fast as her shoes would carry her. Sirius was already pouring the wine.

"What took you so long, darling?"

It had only been ten minutes, but Morrighan laughed and said, "It's these shoes. I used to be able to walk in five inch heels like it was nothing. Now I wobble in two inches."

He laughed a little and said, "You first, love," motioning for her to start.

"Okay," she said, trying to think of a song to sing.

"_Hey, soul sister, ain't that Mister Mister on the radio, stereo, the way you move ain't fair you know. Hey, soul sister, I don't wanna miss a single thing you do tonight._" (Soul Sister, Train)

"Wow," Sirius said. "You're good without the wine. Don't know the song, though."

"That's because it doesn't come out for another fifteen years or so," she laughed. "My best friend and I danced around to it at Christmas last time I slept over at her house. We were singing at the top of our lungs. It sounded terrible. Your turn."

"You'll want that wine, love," he said playfully. She took an obliging sip as he cleared his throat.

"_You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us and the world will be as one_." (Imagine, John Lennon *)

Morrighan laughed.

"Well, I think you just killed that song for me," she said. He certainly wasn't a singer, but he appeared to appreciate and flaunt that fact.

"You know the Beatles?" he said with a grin.

"Everyone knows the Beatles," she laughed. "I just like Lennon, though. I think the rest is crap."

"Shame on you," he teased. "Anyway, your next song, please."

"_Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone. I'll be waiting; all that's left to do is run. You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess. It's a love story, baby, just say yes._" (Love Story, Taylor Swift *)

"Really? That Muggle play that Lily liked so much? They made a song out of that?"

"Yeah, but it's not actually like the play at all. Nobody dies and they get married."

Sirius frowned.

"Happy ending? That's rubbish."

Morrighan laughed and said, "Perhaps, but it was an incredibly catchy and popular song. Your turn."

"_Baby, I can't stay, you got to roll me and call me the tumblin' dice._" (Tumbling Dice, The Rolling Stones)

"What is that?" asked Morrighan, taking a sip of wine, wincing at his rendition or whatever that was supposed to be.

"It's the Stones, love."

"Oh, so you were sounding like crap on purpose. Got it."

"No love for the Stones?"

She just snorted, and he laughed.

"You can just all you want, dear," he said, "but my Jagger impression was popular with the ladies, back in the day."

Morrighan doubted that it was the Jagger that the girls were after, but she'd let him have his fantasies. Besides, it was her turn.

"_I don't care what they say; I'm in love with you. They try to pull me away, but they don't know the truth. My heart's crippled by the vein that I keep on closing. You cut me open and I keep bleeding, keep, keep bleeding love. I keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love. I keep bleeding, keep, keep bleeding love. You cup me open._" (Bleeding Love, Leona Lewis *)

"Well," he said, pouring himself more wine, "that was beautiful, but the song sounds bloody depressing. Pardon the pun."

"Oh, you go on, then," Morrighan laughed.

He winked.

"_So goodbye yellow brick road, where the dogs of society howl. You can't plant me here in your penthouse. I'm going back to my plough, back to the howling old owl in the woods hunting the horny back toad. Oh, I've finally decided my future lies beyond the yellow brick road!_" (Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John *)

Morrighan grinned and kissed his cheek.

"What was that for?" he laughed.

"For Elton John! That was marvelous, Sirius!"

"You've clearly had too much to drink. Go on then, Morrighan."

"_Standing in the front yard telling me how I'm such a fool, talking 'bout how I'll never ever find a man like you. You got me twisted. You must not know 'bout me, you must not know 'bout me. I could have another you in a minute, matter fact, he'll be here in a minute, baby. You must not know 'bout me, you must not know 'bout me. I can have another you by tomorrow, so don't you ever for a second get to thinking you're irreplaceable._" (Irreplaceable, Beyonce *)

Sirius liked that song a lot and asked her to sing it again, but Morrighan insisted that it was his turn.

"Okay, love," he said with a grin. "If you liked Elton, you'll love this."

"_Waterloo, I was defeated, you won the war. Waterloo, promise to love you forevermore. Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to. Waterloo, knowing my fate is to be with you. Waterloo, finally facing my Waterloo._" (Waterloo, ABBA *)

Morrighan did, in fact, love it, and collapsed in a fit of giggles and refused to sing again until he admitted that he knew the song because Lily loved ABBA, so James always played it at parties trying to win her affection.

"Okay," she said. "This one was big when I was younger… I have a lot of fond memories with this song."

She cleared her throat.

"_Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window. Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find. Reaching for something in the distance, so close you can almost taste it, release your inhibitions. Feel the rain on your skin. No one else can feel it for you, only you can let it in. No one else, no one else can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken. Live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins. The rest is still unwritten._" (Unwritten, Natasha Bedingfield *)

This time, although Sirius insisted that he loved her song, he dove right into his next rendition, insisting that she would love it.

"_Mama, just killed a man, put a gun against his head, pulled my trigger, now he's dead. Mama, life had just begun, but now I've gone and thrown it all away. Mama, ooo, didn't mean to make you cry. If I'm not back again this time tomorrow, carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters._" (Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen *)

Morrighan was so delighted that she insisted several times that he repeat the performance, and each time he proudly obliged, until she realized they had gotten off track and took her turn.

"_Since you been gone I can breathe for the first time. I'm so movin' on, yeah, yeah. Thanks to you now I get what I want, since you been gone._" (Since U Been Gone, Kelly Clarkson *)

Sirius took a heavy swig of wing, stood up, messed up his hair and started screaming, "_Is this the MPLA or is this the UDA or is this the IRA? I thought it was the UK, or just another country, another council tenancy. I wanna be an anarchist!_" (Anarchy in the UK, The Sex Pistols*)

"Yes!" Morrighan squealed. "That as your best impression yet!"

"Really?" Sirius laughed. "The Sex Pistols? Better than the Stones?"

"Much," Morrighan nodded solemnly. "I think you'd make a great Sid Viscious."

"I suppose you'd be Nancy then?" Sirius laughed as Morrighan slapped him. "Right, then, no drugs for us. Your turn, love."

"_I've found a reason for me to change who I used to be, a reason to start over new, and the reason is you._" (The Reason, Hoobastank *)

Sirius was mid-drink when she looked at him expectantly.

"What, that's it?"

"Yep, your turn."

"_We are the champions, my friends and we'll keep on fighting 'til the end. We are the champions. We are the champions. No time for losers 'cause we are the champions of the world._" (We Are the Champions, Queen *)

Morrighan laughed and said, "You like Queen, eh?"

"Yeah," Sirius said with a huge smile. "Good memories with their music. That one was huge when James was named captain. We won the cup that year. It became the Gryffindor Quidditch theme."

Morrihgan thought to herself how Sirius might feel differently about the song now, especially the part about doing a sentence without committing a crime. Pushing aside the thought, she continued the game at Sirius's expectant gaze.

"_I'm here without you baby, but you're still on my lonely mind. I think about you, baby, and I dream about you all the time. I'm here without you, baby, but you're still with me in my dreams and tonight it's only you and me._" (Here Without You, 3 Doors Down)

"_Well, who are you? Who, who, who, who? I really wanna know. Tell me who are you? Who, who, who, who? 'Cause I really wanna know._" (Who Are You, The Who)

Morrighan laughed.

"I think you sang it wrong."

"Probably. Your turn."

"_And I need you, and I miss you, and now I wonder… If I could fall into the sky, do you think time would pass me by? 'Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles if I could just see you tonight._" (A Thousand Miles, Vanessa Carlton *)

"It's beautiful, love, but what is it with you and bloody depressing music?"

"I was a sad teenager. It's your turn."

"_The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in. Meltdown expected, the wheat is growing thin. Engines stop running, but I have no fear, 'cause London is drowning and I live by the river._" (London Calling, The Clash)

"I've never heard that one," Morrighan said, pouring herself more wine.

"No? Well, I've never heard anything you're singing, so I guess that's only fair. Go on, love, sing me another one!"

"_Tell me, did you sail across the sun? Did you make it to the Milky Way to see the lights all faded and that heaven is overrated? Tell me, did you fall from a shooting star, one without a permanent scar and did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there?_" (Drops of Jupiter, Train *)

"_She's out of my life. She's out of my life and I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I don't know whether to live or die and it cuts like a knife. She's out of my life._" (She's Out of My Life, Michael Jackson *)

He looked as though he was going to keep singing, but Morrighan burst into tears.

"I didn't think it was that bad," he defended playfully. "What's wrong?"

"MJ's dead," she sobbed. "I mean, he's got over a decade left, but when I'm from, he's dead. And that's my favorite song of his. It always makes me cry."

Sirius was a bit shocked to hear that Michael Jackson wasn't much longer for the world, but he comforted Morrighan until she felt ready to sing again.

"_And if you said this life ain't good enough I would give my world to lift you up. I would change my life to better suit your mood 'cause you're so smooth. And just like the ocean under the moon, well, it's the same as the emotion that I get from you. You got the kind of loving that can be so smooth. Give me your heart, make it real, or else forget about it._" (Smooth, Santana and Rob Thomas *)

"_Another one bites the dust. Another one bites the dust. And another one gone and another one gone. Another one bites the dust. Hey, hey I'm gonna get you too. Another one bites the dust._" (Another One Bites the Dust, Queen)

"_Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight. Lead me out on the moonlit floor. Lift your open hand. Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance. Silver moon's sparkling, so kiss me._" (Kiss Me, Sixpence None the Richer *)

It was then that two things, or rather, three things, happened. Firstly, Morrighan realized they had finished both bottles of wine. Secondly, Sirius was so drunk (having drank about a bottle and a half single-handedly on top of his morning firewhiskey) that he was actually pressing her to the wall and trying to kiss her. Thirdly, they were no longer alone. Remus had walked in and was taking in the scene before him: empty alcohol bottles, drunken Sirius, half-drunken Morrighan; it was becoming a trend. With a great sigh, he pulled them apart.

"I can't ever leave you two alone, can I?"

"You're no fun, Moony," hissed Sirius, trying to get back to the position he had been in before the rude intrusion.

"Yeah," giggled Morrighan, "all both of you!"

"All right, that seals it," Remus laughed. "You're both going to bed right now."

Despite the fact that it was really quite early in the day, and amidst the groans, jeers, and insults of the drunken pair, Remus managed to get them both to their rooms and lock them in without wands to sleep off the booze. It was like taking care of children sometimes, but children were much easier to put down for naps then a fully grown pair.

When Morrighan went about the rest of her day after she had sobered up, she didn't mention their singing debacle, but she heard Sirius whistling Sixpence None the Richer as he went about the chores Remus gave him to keep him out of trouble while they did some Ancient Runes. She couldn't help but smile.

*denotes songs I have on my iPod.

**A/N: Once again, this chapter was pure fluff. I really enjoyed writing it, though, and even transferring it from its paper form was an entertaining affair. While you will be seeing more sober Sirius in a bit, once things start to get more serious and concrete, you will still have the occasional bout of drunken Sirius. I like him that way, and it appears many of you do as well, so never fear! He's never going perpetually sober.**

**For those of you who actually read the whole chapter, give me a * in the review so I know you finished it, and let me know if you liked it, please! It's obviously very different from my usual, so I wanted to see what you all thought. Cheers!**

**-J**


	9. Happy Birthday, Love

Molly made it a grand affair, October the twenty-third, 1995. Morrighan couldn't help but think to herself that in her old life, she had no recollection of that particular birthday, but her grandfather would have been there, and the cake was probably Lion King themed.

In Grimmauld Place, Molly, Arthur, Bill, Sirius, Remus, Kingsley, Mad-Eye, and Tonks were all present. Molly made a beautiful cake, green frosted with purpled scrolled icing (going off colors she'd seen Morrighan wear, no doubt). She received many lovely presents, including several books, a Sneakascope, more clothes (Tonks gave her a special box to open later, which Morrighan was sure contained more lingerie), and plenty of homemade sweets and knitted goods from the Weasleys (including a hand-knit sweater dress). Sirius also informed her that he would be giving her present to her after everyone had gone. That could mean many things, however, as Sirius relished any number of things of which Molly did not approve.

The cake was delicious, but Morrighan couldn't help but think to herself that her own mother's cake was better. She made no mention or gesture that the cake was anything but delicious.

Indeed, even dinner had Morrighan a bit nostalgic for home. Molly made fabulous food, of course, and typically Morrighan would never have felt anything but satisfied after a Molly Weasley meal, but Morrighan's mother had a tradition of letting the birthday girl or boy choose their dinner. The Capilla children typically used this as an opportunity to eat things they liked which their other siblings were more or less opposed to. Morrighan and her brother Nathan in particular liked to pick seafood dishes, especially their mother's paella recipe.

Steak and potatoes were lovely in all their many varieties, but it wasn't Morrighan's idea of birthday food.

Still, Morrighan was nothing if not gracious. She was extra careful to thank Molly and compliment the delicious food, particularly the cake (although the filling was chocolate, and Morrighan didn't believe chocolate belonged in cake). After dinner they had drinks (in moderation, which Sirius coped with surprisingly well), and sat around the kitchen table, exchanging stories of their own twenty-first birthdays.

Sirius's twenty-first birthday, of course, was in 1981, just after having been taken to Azkaban, and so that was where the story telling halted abruptly. Even Remus didn't feel like recounting his own after seeing the pained, hollow look in Sirius's eyes at the thought of Azkaban. Morrighan had a feeling, anyway, that Remus's would have been a lighter shade of depressing.

"So, what did you do for your last birthday, dear?" Molly said, trying to bring the mood back around to cheerfulness, looking expectantly at Morrighan.

"Well," Morrighan said slowly, "it was a Sunday, so I didn't have classes. I think I watched television with some friends, and then a few of my friends got me a cake from the store, brought it to my dorm room, and lit the candles right under the smoke detector, which went off." She smiled fondly. "Smoke detectors make really loud, high-pitched noises when there's smoke in the air, to let you know there might be a fire. So we had to clear out the smoke to keep the fire alarm from going off and the sprinklers and whatnot. That would have been a disaster."

Kingsley, Sirius, Tonks, and Remus, who all had a reasonable amount of familiarity with Muggle life all smiled at the story, and the Weasleys smiled politely as if they knew, but it was clear they weren't sure what was amusing about the story. Morrighan wasn't really in the mood to try to explain.

Finally, the guests dissipated, although Molly made sure to say an extra-long goodbye, for whatever reason. Before Morrighan could catch her breath after the guests had Disapparated, Sirius literally picked her up, tossed her over his shoulder, grabbed Tonks's special box, and carried her up to his room.

"Do you have any idea what's in that box?" Morrighan squealed, both terrified of being dropped and mortified that his answer would be yes and that the box would really have what she thought it would inside.

"Not a clue," he said with a bark-like laugh. "I just figured you'd get your two secret presents at once. And I don't like things being kept from me."

He tossed her gently down on his bed and shoved the box into her hands.

"Open hers first," he said like a petulant child. "I want to be last, because you save the best for last."

Morrighan rolled her eyes.

"Sirius, I don't think–"

"Are you familiar with the concept of puppy dog eyes?" he said sharply.

"Erm, yes," she said slowly, wondering if this was going in the horrible direction she thought it was.

"I happen to have invented them. Spare yourself and open the fucking box."

Morrighan sighed. He had to be so punny all the time. It was painfully predictable, but more than anything it reminded her of her father. Simon Capella was the king of puns, and it drove everyone around him crazy. She hadn't realized how much she missed her father until that moment. She fought back the tears, but they came too fast and rolled down her cheek.

"Love, what's wrong?" he said, frowning. "I haven't even given you the puppy dog eyes. It's your birthday, you should be filled with joy and happiness and all that bloody nonsense. What are these tears for?"

For a moment, she sniffed, and wiped her eyes, but more tears spilled.

"I miss my daddy," she whimpered, biting her lip. "I mean, I miss my mum and everybody too, but I really miss my daddy. Sometimes he was a bit of a pain, like he was really punny and liked to poke fun and stuff, and he could be a right grouch, but he loved me, even if he never said it. And he was one of my favorite people and I miss him so much."

She hardly realized she was shaking with tears until Sirius wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a gentle rocking hug.

"Shh," he sighed, petting her hair. "It's going to be okay. I wish I could bring you your family, and I'm so sorry that I can't, but I'm glad you're in my life, for what that's worth."

"That's worth everything," she whispered, half hoping he didn't hear her as she spoke into his chest, breathing in that scent of his that always calmed her down. She took a deep breath and pulled out of the hug. "I suppose I ought to open the box, then," she said with a chuckle, wiping her tears away once more.

Morrighan slipped the box open very slowly, just to torture Sirius, who really was acting like an impatient five-year-old. Finally, she set the top of the box aside, lifted the tissue paper, and revealed: lingerie. She probably turned about six shades of red as she looked down at the two lacy negligees (one blue, one green and black) and about a half dozen pairs of lacy underwear and bras. Sirius's jaw dropped.

"Is that… are those… Sweet Merlin."

She snorted.

"So tell me," he said with a seductive sort of purr, "how come you never wear anything like that when you have nightmares, darling?"

"Because," Morrighan snapped, flustered, "I don't really wear stuff like this. Tonks thinks I ought to, but back home I don't have anything like it."

"Not even for some lucky boyfriend?" he pressed. "Maybe you'll wear this when you next see Freddie?"

"No," Morrighan sighed. "I've not had sex in a very long time, and haven't really planned to do so for a long time. Fred is included in that. It would have to take a force of nature to seduce me. Anyway, the last time I went lingerie shopping, it was for my best friend's bachelorette gift, and she went with me."

"You weren't even a tiny bit jealous that she got the pretty, lacy things?" Sirius teased.

Morrighan had to admit that she had been a bit jealous at the time, but she really shouldn't have been. After all, her celibacy was self-induced, even if for good reasons.

"Not really," she lied with a shrug. "I'd long since come to terms with my celibacy. It's for my own good. If I wanted lacy underwear so badly, I could have bought it anyway, but I just didn't need it, and there were other things I wanted more."

More like it was easier to tell herself she was meant to be alone if she didn't actively make herself desirable.

"Well, I think they're lovely," he said. "I would institute a policy where I get to randomly check and see if you're wearing them and you don't get chocolate if you're not, but I have a feeling Remus would find some way to accidentally catch me at it and say I couldn't do it or some such rubbish. Spoilsport."

Sirius winked and Morrighan broke out into a fit of uncontrollable giggles. For a split second, she had to remind herself that they hadn't actually been drinking. Maybe this was always how their interactions would feel, drunken or sober.

"All right, then," Morrighan said with a laugh once she had calmed herself enough. "I believe it's time for the final gift of the night. You promised, Sirius. It's your turn."

"Well, I got you a conventional gift, in case people get nosy, like Moony or Dora or something," Sirius said, tossing her a box from her bedside table. "It's firewhiskey, a book of sexual positions, and a subscription to Witch Weekly. You can open it later."

"Sexual positions?" Morrighan spluttered.

"You said you'd yet to have good sex, love," Sirius said with a wink. "Figured it might give you some ideas to fix that dilemma."

Morrighan slapped him playfully, but he just barked with laughter.

"Anyway," he said finally, when she'd ceased her slapping, "your real gift."

She looked at him expectantly, thinking he'd have another parcel under his bed or something like that, but he just smiled at her for a moment, that dazzling, unnaturally attractive smile of his. She raised an eyebrow, conveying her distrust in the suspense.

"Firstly, I'd been planning this one almost since meeting you," he said softly. "Don't ask why. It's just something I've wanted to do."

Then, without further pretext or warning, Sirius leaned in a kissed her softly on the cheek, lingering there for a moment, hovering over her skin with his lips, leaning in a little closer, inhaling deeply. Morrighan was grateful that she was able to hold in her shudder, because she was sure that would have been bad timing.

"Secondly," he whispered huskily, "I've been planning this one ever since you told me you've never had a kiss you enjoyed."

Before Morrighan had a chance to process his words, Sirius's lips were pressed on hers, gently but firmly, with all the warmth and care one could ask for in a kiss, but still with a hint of something Morrighan couldn't name that made her feel suddenly weak and dizzy.

Morrighan's mother had said that when Morrighan found the right person, she would change her views on physical affection, that with the right person everything felt right, but Morrighan thought it was one of those things people said to make people like Morrighan hold out for the "right person", as if there was such a thing. She had never believed a word of the propaganda. Kissing wasn't meant to feel like anything, it was just kissing.

But her perception changed completely the second Sirius's lips touched hers. Her eyes had fluttered closed, her heart raced, and she felt more out of breath than she imagined possible. His lips made her skin feel like fire and ice all at once and she wanted to sigh at the sensation, but she knew it wouldn't have been a good idea, so she held it in.

And although it felt like one of those things that went on forever, the kiss itself was over far too soon, lasting what was probably closer to a few brief seconds. It felt like eternal and momentary all at once, and Morrighan wanted nothing more than to grab his face and pull him back to meet her lips once more when he had pulled away, but it wouldn't have been right. It wouldn't have been fair.

"Was that good?" he said, what she hoped was a little bit breathlessly.

"Yes," was all she managed to spit out, although she wanted to tell him it was the most divine experience of her life.

"I'm glad," he said with a smile. "I have to admit, I've wanted to do that for a while."

"Really?" Morrighan squeaked out before she had a chance to stop herself. She sounded like a naïve little idiot and she knew it: it was the way she had sounded most of her life. But somehow, sitting there with Sirius, a _man_ who had just kissed her, she felt even more of a fool than usual.

"Yeah," he said, running his fingers absently through his raven-black locks. "Merlin, you're a lot harder to talk to sober."

Morrighan frowned.

"Really?"

She could have smacked herself in the face for so obviously repeating herself had Sirius not been sitting right there, but instead she felt the blush she couldn't hinder furiously filling her cheeks, and his smile widened when he saw it.

Morrighan thought absently that she ought to blush more often.

"I suppose Moony's got you working twice as hard tomorrow to make up for the lack of productivity today," Sirius said dryly.

"Actually, Severus is coming down for a lesson," Morrighan said slowly. "So Remus said he was going to go a bit easier on me since he knows Severus is going to work me into the ground."

"Ah," Sirius said sharply. "Well, you can't afford to have a late night tonight, then. I suppose you best get to sleep."

Feeling rather put out, Morrighan could think of nothing to do but nod, gather up her things, and head for the door, pausing on the threshold, turning back to look at Sirius, who was staring pointedly at a spot on the floor.

"Sirius?" she said softly. His face jerked up to meet her eyes quickly, and she blushed once more, but she couldn't afford not to say what she meant to say. "Thank you, really. That's the best gift I've gotten in a really long."

A small smile played at his lips.

"Glad to have been of service then," he said softly. She turned to go, missing him biting his lip before saying, "Morrighan."

She turned around so quickly that she nearly fell over herself, but managed to keep her footing.

"You don't have to go. I mean," a teasing and – nervous? – smile came over his own lips as he said, "you'll be back here in an hour anyway when the nightmares hit, so you may as well stay, right?"

Morrighan stayed the night, of course, not really able to find a satisfactory counterargument to something she wanted to do, anyway. It had been innocent as the other times, their two bodies simply curled up together under the covers, sharing warmth and space, and actually managing to share the blankets quite judiciously. Morrighan's last thought before she fell asleep was that she could get used to thinking of this as her place, beside him.

The following day, Remus kept his word and hardly made her do a thing. Severus was a notorious taskmaster.

Indeed, Morrighan was shaking just a bit with nerves as she met him in the kitchen of Grimmauld place, having reread half of her Potions text between lunch and that time, which was after dinner. Sirius and Remus had assured her that reading through dinner wasn't necessary, but Morrighan didn't want to look like as much of a fool as she felt she had the last time, so she ignored their well-intentioned suggestions and went with her gut.

Before he dove into working with her, Severus cleared his throat awkwardly and set down a sack in front of her that she assumed contained potion ingredients they would be using.

"Albus sent this for you," he said, pulling a nicely wrapped parcel from the sack and handing it to her.

Someone had told Albus it was her birthday.

"Oh," Morrighan said nervously, not sure whether she ought to open it or wait, but taking it graciously. "Thank you."

Severus clicked impatiently.

"Well, open it, then," he snapped.

Hastily, Morrighan opened the parcel, finding a finely embossed journal and a set of high quality eagle feather quills and premium inks (of various colors, just as she had liked her pens in her other reality). There was also a note.

_Dear Morrighan,_

_Sirius tells me you enjoyed writing. I hope this gift finds you after a lovely birthday, and that you might fill it with fabulous things that your mind creates._

_Best birthday wishes._

_-Albus_

She bit her lip to hide her excitement. It was truly the perfect gift, although it didn't quite beat Sirius's gift… but a kiss from Albus Dumbledore wasn't exactly high on her wishlist.

"Thank you very much, Severus," Morrighan said earnestly. "Please pass on my thanks to Albus."

"Of course," Severus said sharply. "And this is from myself."

With utter shock, Morrighan took a second, equally finely wrapped parcel from Severus, who was shifting awkwardly as he passed it over. With unsteady hands, she opened it, finding a rather old-looking Potions text, not as advanced as the one Harry would discover the next year. Inside was (creepily), a lock of red hair, various crude sketches of a girl with a very pretty face, and notes scrawled in a close, neat hand that she knew to be Severus's. He had given her one of his old textbooks. She looked up at him, eyes wide with surprise.

"It was my text for my O.W.L. years," he said awkwardly. "It is a good text, since out of print, and there is also much information about my time in school written along the margins. Keeping a journal would have been suicide in Slytherin," he explained, "in case it would have been found. But a textbook wasn't something most students would sit around reading for fun. I believe there is information on your precious Marauders in there, as well as Lily and her friends, and many current Death Eaters, and some dead ones, of course. I thought, with your vast but limited knowledge of the past and future, you might find it both instructive and interesting."

"I – I don't even know what to say," she said honestly. It was a very… thoughtful gift, truly. "Thank you, Severus."

He nodded jerkily and then the sentimental rubbish was over (as she imagined him referring to gift giving), and Morrighan was forced to cover almost the entire first year of the Potions curriculum in one night. And somehow, she managed it quite well.

And Severus seemed pleased, which was high praise, Morrighan knew.


	10. Chinese and Cheeseburgers

About a week later, little had changed at Grimmauld Place. When Remus was around, he forced Sirius and Morrighan to be responsible adults and do their work: whether learning or teaching or cleaning. When Remus was gone, Sirius and Morrighan got pissed and behaved like a couple of rowdy teenagers. In reflection, Morrighan thought that while they were capable of being mature adults, Sirius and Morrighan were really both teenagers at heart, and maybe they always would be.

After all, Sirius had been frozen maturity-wise at the same state he had been when taken to Azkaban, which was about Morrighan's age exactly. While Morrighan adored and respected Remus tremendously, Sirius got her in ways Remus never could.

One afternoon, Sirius and Morrighan had planned to drink themselves silly, when they found that Remus had not yet replenished their alcoholic reserves.

"Well, bugger all," Sirius said with a frown. "There goes our day."

"I suppose we could hang out sober," Morrighan said with a shrug.

Sirius looked at her strangely, biting the inside of his cheek thoughtfully. Finally, after several minutes of considering something, he said, "Actually, there was something I wanted to talk with you about, and it's one of those conversations that really ought to be had sober."

Morrighan raised an eyebrow.

"And, what is it? Why haven't we had it yet?"

"Because," he said with a strange sort of laugh, "I've already told you, I have a hard time talking to you when I'm sober."

She cocked her head questioningly and said, "What are you so scared of, Sirius?"

"The inevitable," he muttered, almost to himself, and Morrighan couldn't make anything out of that small statement. Then he heaved a great sigh and said, "But those who live in fear never get anything out of life, so I have to do this, and now's as good a time as any."

"All right, then," Morrighan said. "What is it you've wanted to say?"

Sirius frowned slightly, took a deep breath, set his jaw, and said, "Morrighan Capilla, I think I've fallen in like with you."

It took a moment for his words to process through her brain and then she chuckled a little.

"And what does that mean, exactly?" she said, ignoring the happy flutter of her heart at his words. Flutters were not something to make informed decisions by, and even matters of the heart, she had learned, ought to be dictated by informed decisions.

He considered her for another moment, then said, "It means that in the short time that I've known you, you've become such a fixture in my life that I can't imagine the world without you anymore. It means that if you ever left I wouldn't know what to do. It means that I want us to be more than what we've been, or to try, if you'd like. I mean, Remus is great, but he's my best mate. But you… when I look at you, I don't want to be your best mate, I want to hold you. And I think about things like how your lips taste and if your skin is as soft as it looks and what your hair would feel like around my fingers and I want to know these things, not just sit and wonder about them. And… and I think I might be falling for you, but I know it's too soon to really say, so I guess I've fallen in like with you, and that's the best way I know to say what I feel."

Morrighan felt like she couldn't breathe. She was dizzy and dazed and felt marvelously warm and fuzzy all at once. He liked her. He wanted them to be more than friends. He was only the most attractive, rich, wonderful people she'd ever known in her life, and he had the quality she craved most in any sort of relationship with another human being and he had it in spades: loyalty.

But what to say in response to his great little speech?

"Sirius," she said softly, "I have to tell you that I haven't dated anyone in a really long time, and there are some very good reasons for that. I really like you, but there are things I want you to know about me before we can decide how to approach anything from here on out."

"Of course," he said, but a goofy smile was already covering his face. If not for the gravity of what she had to tell him, Morrighan was sure she would have had a smile that mirrored his.

For the next half hour, she described to him in detail that need not be expressed here the horrors of her intimate "relationships". It didn't take long for the smile to slide right off his face, and he moved from sitting across the table from her to sitting beside her, wrapping an arm around her, and holding her tightly to his chest as she sobbed.

"So that's what your nightmares are about, then?" he said softly when she'd finished her story. "You're reliving your rape or sexual assault or something?"

"The sexual assault," she said, nodding, sniffing. "I hardly remember the rape, my therapist says I've blocked it out almost completely as a defense mechanism, but I can't forget it… He was someone I thought I knew so well, and I can't get his face and his voice out of my head when the lights go off. I wake up in the night, and it's like he's there, watching me."

He squeezed her tiny frame just a bit, sighing.

"Oh, love. If I could, I would gather up everyone who's ever hurt you and make them suffer what you suffered. Believe me, I wish I could."

Morrighan believed him. She knew he was being sincere, and when he placed his hand under her chin, lifted her face to look up at him gently, and pressed his lips to hers in a searing yet sweet, delicate kiss, she could feel his sincerity in the act.

"So I'm sorry if I can't be everything you deserve, at least, not right away, and it's okay if you don't want me after all," Morrighan muttered, so sure that he was going to withdraw his previous offers, that he wouldn't want her anymore, and mentally prepared herself for this outcome. After all, who wanted to pick up the pieces of a shattered heart they didn't break?

But to her surprise, he frowned at her and said, "Say something like that ever again and you're not going to be allowed to speak, love. I don't deserve someone as wonderful as you, and yet somehow you're the one being obtuse here. We'll take this at a pace that makes sense for you, darling, but I'm not letting go of you, let's just get that clear here and now."

Morrighan didn't know what to say, so she simply pressed her lips to his in a grateful, chaste kiss. Somehow, though, the kiss changed quickly, and her eyes fluttered closed of their own accord as he nudged her lips open with his tongue and deepened the kiss, allowing the passion to build between them. This time, she didn't restrain herself. She openly sighed into his mouth.

But when Sirius's hands began to explore her torso, she instinctively broke the kiss and jerked away from him. She blushed, sighed, shook her head and said, "Sorry."

"Don't apologize," he whispered, kissing her cheek, close to her ear. "Your pace. If you want to back off, we'll back off. If you feel comfortable, we can move on, but it's entirely up to you."

They sat there in the kitchen for a while, curled up against each other, basking in the silence in the warmth of each other's bodies.

"Remus will be back soon, I imagine," Sirius sighed.

Morrighan frowned. Remus. As much as she adored and respected Remus, at that moment the thought of him was unwelcome. In a world with just her and Sirius, their being together was a wonderful thing, but when other people were brought into the picture… It was less so. She wasn't sure who would understand and who wouldn't, but she was almost certainly that Molly Weasley would be among the less-than-understanding, as would Severus.

"What are we going to say?" she whispered. "If he sees us like this, he'll think we're drunk again."

"I'm sure he will," Sirius said with a little smirk. "Well, I suppose we could tell him, if you'd like. I don't really mind one way or another."

Morrighan bit her lip. She'd kept relationships secret before, mostly from her parents, but she wasn't sure if it was that she was bad at it or that her mother just knew her too well, but Morrighan had never pulled it off for very long successfully. Still, she didn't want anyone to know just yet, to spoil the lovely relationship she hoped to have with Sirius by having it judged and parsed by the world just yet.

"Could we maybe not tell anybody for a while?" she whispered into his shoulder. "I want some time to get used to this, to enjoy just you and me without having to worry about what everyone else thinks. They're all bound to make a big deal of it, especially Molly."

Sirius gave a little bark of laughter and kissed her forehead.

"Yes, Molly will probably think I've corrupted you, you poor innocent thing, and she'll try to make arrangements with Albus to take you away from me, and we can't have that, can we?"

Morrighan smiled and kissed the corner of his mouth.

"No, we can't."

He gave her another quick, deep kiss, but before it could develop, they heard the crack of Apparation, and they quickly parted only moments before Remus came in. He looked around the kitchen suspiciously, a frown on his face. Finally, he said, "What, no firewhiskey this time?"

"We're keeping you on your toes, Moony," Sirius said with a wink. "If we weren't sober sometimes, where would be the fun in subjecting you to us drunk?"

Morrighan giggled, knowing she wouldn't have had she not been so happy because of their covenant made before Remus's entrance, but Sirius simply winked at her, knowingly, and Remus clearly felt like he was missing the joke.

"Well," Remus finally said, "it would be nice to come back to you two sober more often."

"Maybe you'll get your wish," Sirius said with a shrug, "maybe you won't."

"I suppose that's as good as I'm going to get," Remus conceded. "Would either of you like to help me with dinner? Molly said she'll have more food for us by tomorrow, but we're on our own for the night."

"Why don't you get Muggle takeout?" Morrighan begged, as she had every time they had to wait for more food from Molly (they wouldn't ever have to wait, of course, if Morrighan and Sirius didn't eat when they weren't supposed to, but they couldn't stick to a schedule and both had a tendency to eat when they were bored, drunk or sober).

Remus sighed.

"I suppose you miss takeout?"

Morrighan nodded.

"Like you have no idea," she insisted. "I'm a college student. I live off dorm food and takeout, and typically crave my mother's food, but since I can't have that…"

She paused, daydreaming for a moment of her mother's meatballs, chicken casserole, and French toast.

"What do you want?" Remus said, with a sigh, sinking into the chair, obviously resigning himself to going into Muggle London for takeout for the three of them.

"Chinese and cheeseburgers," Morrighan said eagerly. "Please."

Sirius frowned.

"Chinese cheeseburgers?"

"No," she said with a laugh. "Chinese food and cheeseburgers, the two most important staples of takeout food."

Remus took the orders: egg rolls, spring rolls, beef with broccoli, chow mein, shrimp fried rice, fried shrimp, Szechuan beef, shrimp foo yung, scallops with garlic sauce, fortune cookies, two Quarter Pounders, three double cheeseburgers, and three milkshakes (one chocolate, one vanilla, and one strawberry).

An hour and a half later, Remus was back with a large amount of food.

"Are you sure we even need Molly to make us food right away?" he joked. "Seems like we've got enough for a week right here."

Morrighan shook her head.

"This may not even last us the night."

She was right. Between the three of them, they finished off the food incredibly swiftly.

"Where the hell did you pack all that?" Sirius asked incredulously, poking Morrighan experimentally in a variety of places, as if he was expecting her to explode if he hit the right spot.

Morrighan laughed.

"I have a bunch of people in my family, you forget, Sirius," she said, swatting his hand away. "If I wanted to eat, I had to eat fast and eat lots. Especially because my brothers are a pair of eating machines, I swear." She snatched up her fortune cookie. "Who wants to eat my cookie?"

Remus frowned.

"You're not going to eat it?"

She shook her head.

"No," Morrighan said, prying it open. "I just like to read the fortunes. I hate the cookies."

"I'll eat it," said Sirius, reaching for his own. "What does yours say, love?"

"It says," she said, uncurling the little slip of paper, "'The one you love is closer than you think.'" She frowned. "That's... hmm."

Sirius just chuckled and opened his, snatching the cookie from her hand.

"Mine says," he spat through a mouthful of cookie, "' Love conquers all.' Sounds like something Albus would say. What have you got, Moony?"

Remus carefully cracked open his cookie and delicately flattened his little slip of paper before reading aloud, "'Your everlasting patience will be rewarded sooner or later.'" He frowned. "What on earth is that supposed to mean?"

"Maybe it's referring to your virginity," Sirius said with a wink, and Remus managed to flush and attractive shade of pink and glare at Sirius all at once.

"Don't be stupid, Sirius," Remus finally managed to splutter. "These things are just silly Muggle sayings. They don't actually have anything to do with our futures."

But Morrighan and Sirius couldn't help but exchange wondering glances at this, and Morrighan looked down at hers, pursing her lips thoughtfully before folding it gently and tucking it away in her pocket for safekeeping. She had always been a bit superstitious, and there was no reason they couldn't be true anymore than there was any reason why magic couldn't exist. And certainly, magic existed. That was another thing she had never really doubted, despite what everyone around her had proclaimed.

"I think I need some sleep," Morrighan finally proclaimed. "All that food made me sleepy. Good night."

She hugged both Remus and Sirius and made her way up the stairs to her room, changing into one of the nighties that Tonks had bought her (for she didn't have anything else clean at the moment), and curling up in her bed for warmth. The room was too dark, so she made a little flame that wouldn't catch on anything and set it in a glass by her bed, watching it flicker in the room, too nervous to put out the flame.

Morrighan had thought about going to Sirius's room instead of her own and waiting for him, but now they had admitted physical attraction, she thought it wouldn't be fair to him to be so close to him without him being able to do what she thought he might want to do. Well, of course, he was a man who hadn't had sex in fourteen years. She couldn't imagine how frustrating that must be, and so she didn't want to put either of them in such a situation.

To her pleasant surprise, however, several minutes later Sirius came in wearing a dressing gown, which he tossed onto the floor as soon as he closed the door softly behind him, and he crawled into bed beside her in nothing but his boxers.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered, trying not to shudder at the feel of his skin on hers.

"You don't like the dark," he said matter-of-fact. "Did you really think I was going to sleep with you in here all alone all night? You'd have nightmares for sure, and I hate it when you cry. No, I'm here whether you like it or not, darling." He pulled the blankets back a bit to get better positioning and saw her nightie. A smirk graced his features. "Oh, look what we have here. It seems as though you were expecting me, darling."

She could tell he was teasing, but it still made her flinch and blush that he talked about her like that, but he kissed her forehead, put out the flame, wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "You look gorgeous, darling. Sweet dreams, love."

And with that, Morrighan fell into a peaceful sleep and subsequently began a cycle of falling asleep in Sirius's arms, sometimes after making out, sometimes when the two of them were too tired for such things, sometimes in his room, sometimes in hers, but always wishing she had the courage and the self-confidence to give him what she knew he wanted, and what, if she was being perfectly honest with herself, she wanted as well. But every night was the same, and it wasn't a bad sort of same, but it could have been better, and she knew it.

After all, Sirius made her feel safe and warm and wonderful, unlike anyone had ever done before. She had that night a thought that occurred to her several times over the course of the next few weeks, and it was that she could so easily fall in love with Sirius that it was almost frightening, but in the best possible way. She just hoped that he was really as different as she thought he was, because she didn't think she could handle being let down by Sirius Black.

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to reviewer Mrs Yaya, who had some nice insights on the last chapter. Review and you might see your name in an A/N in a future chapter! *hint, hint***


	11. Phineas Nigellus is a Voyeur

**A/N: To **_**BulletTheBlueSkyU2**_**, who has disabled private messaging, I completely agree with you. Things like that take time, and if you knew the whole backstory, you'd understand that it takes a LOT of time, but you'll like this chapter, me thinks. :D Cheers.**

**-J**

By mid-December, Morrighan found herself facing a difficult task: not telling Sirius that she and he wouldn't be alone for Christmas. This was a problem because Remus was living elsewhere starting at the beginning of December for some tasks for Dumbledore, checking in on a semi-regular basis just to make sure Sirius and Morrighan weren't in need of something they couldn't leave Grimmauld Place to get.

Otherwise, the pair had been alone, and their relationship had begun to develop nicely. They hadn't moved into any sort of sexual acts, but she was allowing Sirius to touch her in sexual ways, and he certainly seemed to like this almost as much as she was finding she did.

In fact, they found themselves, on the evening of the eighteenth of December, sitting in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place with two glasses of wine (they had become increasingly more sober the more they spent time alone together without fear of being interrupted, so the bottle was nowhere to be seen), a nice spaghetti dinner Sirius had sort of cooked with the last of their food supplies, and a single candle on the table. Rather than sitting across the wide table from each other, they were sitting side-by-side, faces extremely close as they ate, kissing every several minutes.

For some reason, there was something in the air that night. It was like, the night to make things go a step further. Morrighan could feel her heart racing every time Sirius's finger tips grazed her cheek, could feel her head spin each time his lips touched any part of her skin, be it her lips or her neck or her ear.

"Sirius," she sighed, "I think… I think it might be a good night."

He chuckled, kissing her neck once more, and a sigh escaped her lips. The sound made him stiffen, and she knew he realized what she meant.

"Wait, you mean, like…?"

"Yeah," she said shyly, "maybe."

Sirius couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his face, but Morrighan was glad of that. It made her heart swell to see it, and when he began kissing her neck more passionately, making his way downward, Morrighan could hardly contain herself. He froze again.

"Not here," he said firmly. "Come on, let's go upstairs."

With a flick of his wand, the kitchen was cleared, and he led her quickly up to his room, where he didn't bother shutting the door or turning off the light before he tossed his own shirt to the floor. Was it really okay for a person to look so good? Morrighan wondered that as she traced his tattoos lightly with her fingertips, admiring the way he had regained his dashing good looks after Azkaban. Before she had too much time to dwell on it, though, Sirius had begun kissing her neck once more, backing her up toward the bed, and tumbling on top of her as they fell onto the soft haven that they had long shared.

He unbuttoned her shirt, which made Morrighan squirm a little, awkwardly, but she knew this was what she wanted, so she forced herself not to flinch or protest.

"Oh, darling," he moaned, gazing down at her chest, which was covered by naught but a blue lace bra, "you're absolutely gorgeous."

He then proceeded to kiss down her chest, quickly removing the bra and making his way down to stomach, which she couldn't help but squirm at. Her ex had done the same thing.

"Ticklish?" he chuckled looking up at her, but he frowned a little when he saw her face. She tried to hide the fear, but she knew she had done a bad job or it.

"Love, if you don't want to do this…"

"No, I do," Morrighan insisted. She did, and she knew from experience that waiting too long wasn't going to make it any better.

"Only if you're sure," he whispered, kissing her sweetly.

But as many of their more innocent kisses did, this one quickly became heated and passionate. Morrighan found herself barely noticing Sirius straddling her body, which felt as weak as putty as she melted against his lips, and she couldn't even bring herself to protest as his hands found her breasts because it felt too good with the feel of his lips, which were tracing their way downward once more. In fact, when his hot mouth had enclosed around one of her nipples, she couldn't hold in the moan that built up inside her. She had lost track of everything, of place and time and everything that wasn't Sirius and the delicious and wonderful sensations he was bringing about in her body.

She barely noticed the sound of a throat clearing, which Sirius had actually just ignored, continuing his oral assault of her breast. After several moments, though, Morrighan became increasingly aware that they were being watched, and that someone was trying to get their attention. She looked around the room hazily, but saw no one there. Finally, it dawned on her what day it was, and she looked up at the portrait, only to find a man sneering down at them with a disgusted expression.

"Sirius," she sighed breathlessly, but he took her words as encouragement rather than an attempt to get him to realize they were being watched, and he massaged her other breast expertly with his fingers. Morrighan moaned in spite of herself, feeling incredibly embarrassed now that she knew they were not alone.

"Sirius," she said again, more strongly, "Phineas Nigellus needs to talk to you." She whined out the last three words as he nibbled her nipple lightly. "It's a message from Albus, and you really need to take it, love."

Finally, Sirius pulled back from her breast, although Morrighan nearly whimpered at the sensation of loss, and he sighed heavily, frowning a little as he turned around to face the portrait, shielding her body from Phineas Nigellus's view.

"What?" Sirius snapped.

"Watch your tone with me, grandson," Phineas Nigellus said snidely. "Professor Dumbledore wishes me to inform you that Arthur Weasley has been injured, and that his wife, children, and Potter will be arriving here shortly."

"What?" Sirius snapped again. "Why? What happened?"

"That was all he said," Phineas Nigellus said. "I'm sure if you weren't busy fornicating with a Mudblood you'd know that you have a perfectly good source of the hows and whys right underneath you."

Morrighan blushed, but squirmed uncomfortably at being addressed so.

"Well, I'm happy to have them here," Sirius said slowly. "I wish it wasn't at quite this moment, but that's the way of things, and they're probably on a time crush."

"Tell Albus that we'd be delighted," Morrighan said, peaking over Sirius's shoulder. "Don't mention this particular instance if you please, sir."

"Well," Phineas Nigellus said with a sniff, "at least she knows her place."

Before Sirius could berate him for the statement, Phineas Nigellus had disappeared to report the message, and hopefully not the situation under which it had been delivered. Morrighan hastily redressed her upper half.

"Did this really have to happen right now?" Sirius sighed.

"Yes, I'm afraid it did," she said with a nervous swallow. "They'll be here any moment, they're coming by Portkey. Try not to look so much like you were just about to have sex, _please_." He obligingly replaced his shirt and combed his fingers through his hair as she straightened herself out. "Kitchen," she snapped, rushing down the stairs before him, and they arrived in the kitchen just before the Weasley children and Harry did, but Kreacher had poked his head out from the pantry.

"Back again, the blood traitor brats, is it true their father's dying…?"

Apparently Phineas Nigellus had searched the house for them quite thoroughly, running into Kreacher in his search.

"OUT!" Sirius roared.

The house-elf rushed out into the hall, and Sirius and Morrighan rushed over to the new arrivals, helping them to their feet. She couldn't help but notice how incredibly pale they all were, especially Harry.

"What's going on?" Sirius asked no one in particular as he helped Ginny up. "Phineas Nigellus said Arthur's been badly injured–"

"Ask Harry," said Fred.

"Yeah, I want to hear this for myself," said George.

Morrighan was well aware that she was the only person in the room not staring expectantly at Harry, knowing that he wouldn't appreciate another set of eyes on him in that moment of fear and confusion he was experiencing.

"I was – I had a – a kind of – vision…"

And he told them the story of seeing the snake attacking Arthur, but Morrighan noted that he conveniently told the story as though he hadn't seen it from the snake's own eyes, but rather as a bystander of some sort.

"Is Mum here?" Fred said, turning to Sirius.

"She probably doesn't even know what's happened yet," Morrighan said. "I expect Albus is relaying the information to her now. The important thing was to get you out of there before Umbridge could do anything to stop you, and to get Arthur the medical help he needed."

"We've got to go to St. Mungo's," Ginny said firmly, looking around at them all, still in their pajamas. "Can you two lend us cloaks or anything–?"

"Hang on, you can't go tearing off to St. Mungo's!" Sirius cried.

"'Course we can go to St. Mungo's if we want," said Fred challengingly, "he's our dad!"

"And how are you going to explain how you knew that Arthur had been attacked before the hospital even let his wife know?"

"What does that matter?" said George hotly.

"George,"Morrighan said softly, "we can't draw attention to the fact that Harry had a vision about this. Can you imagine what the Ministry and the Prophet would do if they got their hands on something like that? Can you imagine what would happen to Harry?"

Ginny said softy, "Somebody else could have told us… We could have heard it somewhere other than Harry…"

"Like who?" said Sirius impatiently. "Listen, your dad's been hurt on duty for the Order and the circumstances are fishy enough without his children knowing about it seconds after it happened, you could seriously damage the Order's–"

"We don't care about the dumb Order!" cried Fred.

"It's our dad dying we're talking about!" George yelled.

"Your father knew what he was getting into, and he won't thank you for messing things up for the Order!" said Sirius angrily, seeming to direct most of his ire at Fred, it seemed to Morrighan. "This is how it is – this is why you're not in the Order – you don't understand – there are things worth dying for!"

"Easy for you to say, stuck here!" roared Fred. "I don't see you risking your neck!"

Morrighan knew Sirius wasn't going to hit Fred, as much as he looked as though he wanted to, but she stepped between the two of them just in case, and spoke softly.

"Fred, I know this isn't easy, but you have to act as though you don't know anything for a bit, all right? When we hear from your mother, things will be different, but until then, we have to keep our heads down. Please, just be a bit civil toward each other?"

Some of the fight in the air dissipated, and although the twins appeared incredibly loth to do so, they followed Ginny's example and found chairs to sit in.

"That's right," Sirius said encouragingly, "come on, let's all… let's all have a drink while we're waiting. _Accio Butterbeer!_"

Seven bottles of butterbeer came soaring toward them, skidding to a halt in front of the various people seated at the table, and Morrighan sat down beside Sirius, placing her hand bracingly, lovingly on his thigh.

For a while, they sat in silence which was only broken by the sounds of sipping and the occasional clunk of glass on the table, and Morrighan avoided looking at Harry, knowing the deep inner turmoil he was going through and not wanting to address it with so many people around. Then a sudden burst of flame happened on the table in front of them, causing them all to jump, and a scroll of parchment and a single phoenix feather were left in its wake.

"Fawkes!" said Sirius, snatching up the parchment. "That's not Dumbledore's writing – it must be a message from your mother – here–"

He thrust the letter at George, who ripped it open and read aloud, "_Dad is still alive. I'm setting out for St. Mungo's now. Stay where you are. I will send news as soon as I can. Mum._"

"Still alive…" George said softly. "But that makes it sound…"

Morrighan new how it sounded, and she felt the deep, depressing feel of the room around her, but she kept reminding herself that Arthur Weasley was _not_ going to die. He was going to be just fine. At one point, Sirius had suggested weakly that they go to bed, but the looks of the Weasleys had put a stop to that idea before it had really gotten any traction.

There was very little talking, only wondering aloud, checking the time, and the like. Dozing had begun to happen around the kitchen, but nobody dare go to sleep, in case they missed something important.

At ten past five in the morning, Molly Weasley walked into the kitchen, causing everyone to perk up in anticipation.

"He's going to be all right," Molly said, her voice weak and tired. "He's sleeping. We can all go and see him later. Bill's sitting with him now, he's going to take the morning off work."

The relief that spread through the kitchen was infectious, and even Morrighan, who had known this exact thing was going to happen, felt a bit better about everything at this concrete sign of things being okay.

"Breakfast," Morrighan said, stretching merrily. "I'll make it. Let's see, breakfast for – eight – let's see… bacon, eggs, tea, toast–"

Harry and Sirius rushed forward to help her gather the ingredients from the nearly-depleted pantry and get plates set out.

Molly thanked Harry for the vision, then turned to thank Morrighan and Sirius for looking after her children all night. Morrighan and Sirius assured her that it was nothing and Morrighan added that they should feel free to stay at Grimmauld Place for as long as Arthur was in the hospital, knowing that Sirius wouldn't extend his courtesy as readily as in the books, since he was no longer in the house by himself.

"Oh, Morrighan, I'm so grateful… They think he'll be in there a little while and it would be great to be nearer… Of course, that might mean we're here for Christmas…"

"There are worse times to have a large group of people around," Sirius said diplomatically, obviously not wanting to seem like the less-than-willing host he was, and also probably thinking that this meant he would have Harry with him over Christmas, which he must be a little bit happy about. With that, Molly threw on an apron and began to help with breakfast.

"Morrighan, Sirius," Harry said in an urgent undertone. "Can I have a quick word? Er – _now_?"

They went into the dark pantry and Harry told them the full story of his vision, including the fact that he saw it from the point of view of the snake, and Sirius said, "Did you tell Dumbledore this?"

"Yes," said Harry impatiently, "but he didn't tell me what it meant. Well, he doesn't tell me anything anymore…"

"Don't worry too much, Harry," Morrighan said softly. "You'll find out soon."

"But that's not all," Harry said quickly. "Morrighan, I… I think I'm going mad… Back in Dumbledore's office, just before we took the Portkey… for a couple of seconds there I thought I was a snake, I _felt_ like one – my scar really hurt when I was looking at Dumbledore – Sirius, I wanted to attack him–"

"It must have been the aftermath of the vision, that's all," said Sirius. "You were still thinking of the dream or whatever it was and–"

"It wasn't that," insisted Harry, shaking his head. "It was like something rose up inside me, like there's a _snake_ inside me–"

"You need to sleep," said Sirius firmly. "You're going to have breakfast and then go upstairs to bed, and then you can go see Arthur after lunch with the others. You're in shock, Harry; you're blaming yourself for something you only witnessed, and it's lucky you _did_ witness it or Arthur might have died. Just stop worrying…"

He clapped Harry on the shoulder and Morrighan followed Sirius out of the pantry, leaving Harry standing alone in the dark and wishing she could come up with something to tell him, some sort of comfort, but there was nothing at all comforting about what she knew, and she didn't have the time, energy, or confidence in her ability to not ruin the future to tell him everything he would need to know. Albus Dumbledore had carefully crafted the final bit of the story, and who was Morrighan Capilla to argue with the ways of the most powerful wizard who ever lived?

Still, something felt very off as she sat down at the table to breakfast with the Weasleys. This was only the first of the woes this family would suffer, the greatest of which would be the death of Fred. Morrighan began to feel guilt in the pit of her stomach as she watched Fred and George eat. In just a few years' time, everything would be different and moments like this, with the two of them whole and eating a simple breakfast together, would be something to look back on and cherish, for George, anyway.

Was it wrong to save Sirius, and not the others? She knew she shouldn't change more than she absolutely had to, more than she could handle, but knowing that didn't make her feel any less guilty. When the day came, when the battle happened, would Morrighan feel responsible for the deaths that she might have prevented?


	12. Christmas at Grimmauld Place

**A/N: You guys, this story has almost reached the stats of Two Can Play This Game, and it's not even half the length yet! :D I'm so excited and humbled and honored and THANK YOU FOR LOVING MY STORY! I love your reviews, all of you, you're marvelous people! :D**

**-J**

After breakfast, Morrighan curled up with Sirius in his room, praying that no one would go looking for her, but she should have known that they would all be far too tired to do anything but sleep off the hours they had lost in anxiety. Surprisingly, it was easier than ever to curl up against Sirius's nearly-naked body and fall asleep, and she found herself realizing that she could do just that every day for the rest of her life and be happier than she ever imagined being, and she vaguely wondered what such thoughts meant when she woke again, breathing in his delicious scent once more, which had easily become her favorite scent in the world.

"Morning, beautiful," he sighed, clearly in the process of smelling her hair, which was one of his favorite pastimes.

"Good morning, Sirius," she yawned, smiling up at him as he kissed her nose gently. "Why the long face?"

Indeed, he looked troubled, and had many reasons to be troubled, but she wanted to know what was troubling him before she said something, or she would spoil something that could change everything in bad ways.

"Harry," he muttered, sighing deeply against her shoulder, where he was burying his face. "I'm worried about him."

"I might have guessed," she admitted thoughtfully. "All I can tell you is, if I have anything to say about it, this isn't going to affect him too badly, and I can promise you that he's going to be a wonderful, well-adjusted adult. You'll see," she added, hoping against hope that he would.

"I'm so glad I have you," he sighed, kissing her neck gently. "That's the only reason I'm not exactly thrilled to have Harry and them around. I want more time with you."

"There will be plenty of time for all of that when they've left," Morrighan said playfully.

"Promises, promises," Sirius said with a wink, kissing her deeply before sighing, rolling out of bed, and straightening his hair. "We probably ought to see them off."

"Oh, yes, Tonks will be here!" Morrighan said eagerly, copying Sirius's motion and pulling on her shirt (which had somehow come off in her sleep… that sneaky dog) and doing it up hastily. "Let's go!"

As Morrighan remembered, Tonks and Mad-Eye were there, waiting for the Weasleys and Harry to finish lunch so that they could take them to St. Mungo's.

"Wotcher, Morrighan!" Tonks cried.

"Wotcher, Tonks!" Morrighan squealed, rushing at Tonks and hugging her tightly. Tonks yanked her into a side closet and locked the door with her wand.

"What are you doing?" Morrighan asked, half amused, half concerned.

"You had sex," Tonks said matter-of-factly. "The way you were behaving, you've totally had sex."

"I haven't," Morrighan said, honestly and earnestly.

"Please tell me it wasn't Lupin," Tonks said, the fear evident in her voice.

"It's not," Morrighan said hurriedly. The last thing she needed was to mess up that incredibly adorable plotline. "No, and I haven't had sex!"

"Sirius, then?"

"There was no sex, woman!"

"Sirius, then. How was he?"

"NO SEX!"

"Quiet, or Mad-Eye's going to think I'm trying to rape you. So you didn't have sex?"

"Nada."

"Is that Italian for sex?"

"Tonks…"

"Relax, I know a bit of Spanish, I went there on holiday a few times when I was younger. Honestly, though, there's something, I'm not an idiot."

Morrighan sighed.

"Well, we _almost_… but then the snake thing happened and–"

"Wait, wait, wait," Tonks said incredulously, "you got cockblocked because of something you _already knew was going to happen_? What in the name of Merlin's balls is wrong with you? Do I have to do everything myself? Go and fuck him while we're gone!"

Morrighan blinked. She decided that Tonks hadn't meant to imply that she would sleep with Sirius if Morrighan didn't, but it was incredibly tempting. Instead, she said, "I don't want to be interrupted, you know? Having sex with Molly Weasley in the house is more intimidating than you might think. No, we'll wait it out. They'll be gone in January and we'll have our chance then. It's not like anyone will be around for long periods of time again until June. We'll have months to–"

"Shag like bunnies and make me a dozen second cousins. Yup."

"That wasn't quite what I had in mind, but I suppose that's the general idea, although I hate to break it to you, but I'm _not_ having twelve babies between now and June. That's not going to happen."

"Tonks," said Mad-Eye's voice after a sharp rap on the closet door, "quit fooling around in there. They're almost done with lunch."

Tonks rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Mad-Eye. Be right out."

She winked at Morrighan, opened the door, saluted Mad-Eye playfully, and headed out toward the front door. Morrighan just bit back her laughter under Mad-Eye's unimpressed gaze and wandered into the kitchen to grab some lunch.

"Have a great time at the hospital guys," she said, wishing she hadn't sounded like such a prat. "Pass on my wishes to Arthur, will you, Molly?"

"Of course, dear," Molly said kindly, corralling all of her children out into the hall. "We'll see you later on."

Morrighan sank into a chair beside Sirius, who waited for the front door to close before wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her lips gently.

"Alone for a while," he said suggestively.

"No," she said, grabbing a sandwich Molly had left for her: corned beef, her favorite. Why hadn't she ever made one of those when she was in the real world? They were incredibly delicious, no matter what Ron thought.

"But baby," he whined, but withered under her raised eyebrow. "Yes, ma'am," he muttered.

They sat in silence for a while, eating, cuddling, and generally enjoying the warmth of their shared presence, but Sirius said, "So, when are we planning on actually coming clean about all of this?"

"Well, Tonks already knows, I should warn you," Morrighan admitted. "She cornered me, convinced I'd had sex, although at first she thought I was shagging Remus for some reason."

"As if," Sirius said with a playful sneer, which Morrighan smacked him equally playfully for. "So she knows that we're together, or she knows that I stay awake at night wishing I could screw you into the mattress?"

Morrighan shivered, feeling his breath on her neck, remembering his mouth on her skin, and so close to saying fuck it all and dragging him upstairs on the spot, but it wouldn't be right. Like she told Tonks, if she wanted her first time with Sirius to be right, to be memorable, she would have to do it when there was no chance of being interrupted. Or at least, far less of a chance than they currently had.

She did, however, turn her head and kiss him deeply, which he instantly responded to. His tongue probed her mouth, his hands pulling her closer, exploring her torso above her clothing, although she ached to feel his hands on her skin once more…

But she was running out of air. She didn't like to think about breaking the kiss – that delicious, wondrous kiss – but she had to get air. Morrighan pulled away, gazing up at his lust-filled gray eyes, wishing she could just fall into his arms and let him have his way, but any minute, the Weasleys would be back, any minute they would have to entertain once more and… and there was the door. They were home.

Had it really been so long?

Harry went straight upstairs to his room, just as Morrighan knew he would, and she just watched him, wanting to follow and tell him that everything would be okay, but not sure if she should. For several hours she fidgeted, unsure of whether she ought to talk to him or not, and when Ron was sent up to tell him dinner was ready and came back alone, Morrighan very nearly went up after him, but he was an angst-filled fifteen-year-old boy. He needed some time and space to think, and besides, Morrighan did _not_ want to come face to face with Phineas Nigellus again, and she knew he was there.

After dinner, however, all thought of Harry and his anti-social behavior was wiped from Morrighan's mind as she was cornered in the stairwell by none other than Fred Weasley.

"I've missed you," he whispered, moving in close to her, pinning her against the wall.

"I've missed _all_ of you," she said pointedly. "I'm going to bed, Fred. I need to get by."

An eyebrow quirked eagerly on his face and he leaned forward, whispering huskily in her ear.

"Is that an invitation?"

Morrighan knew Fred didn't mean any harm, but she was shuddering, and not in a good way, clutching aimlessly at the wall behind her in fear, praying he would back away, give her space… anything.

"Fred, please, stop."

"But it's been so long," he whined. "I've missed you." He kissed her jawline lightly. "I've missed the way your pretty lips taste." He kissed her chin, just below said lips. "I've missed the feel of your body pressed against mine in the secret corners of the house–"

"I believe I heard the lady ask you to stop, Fred," growled Sirius's voice from behind Fred, and the Weasley jumped back hastily, shocked, looking like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Morrighan, on the other hand, sank down the wall and began shivering, shaking, and biting back the sobs.

Fred didn't mean to. He hadn't known.

But all Morrighan wanted to do was curl up in a ball and take a long, hot shower, wiping away how dirty she felt, how out of control and helpless and… and… She looked up at Sirius with scared, broken eyes and he was looking down at her, clearly wishing he could scoop her up and hold her and make everything better, but unsure of what she wanted him to do.

"I know you're young, Fred, so I'll give you a bit of a tip, here, when a girl says 'no', she really means 'no'." Sirius looked up at Fred and continued, "And if you lay a hand on her in a way I don't like again, I'll rip you limb from limb. Are we understood?"

Fred looked something like Morrighan would have expected a fish out of water to look, mouth slightly open, head flopping back and forth from looking at Sirius to looking at Morrighan, who was still shuddering on the floor.

"What did I do?" Fred said softly. "I'm sorry, I really don't understand."

Morrighan felt a twinge of pain in her heart, knowing he hadn't meant to hurt her at all, and she looked up at Sirius and whimpered slightly. All hesitation in him broke and he fell instantly to his knees, wrapping his arms lovingly around her and cradling her gently against his warm chest. She wanted him to tell her how much he loved her, that she was safe and that nobody was going to hurt her, but she knew he wasn't comfortable with Fred standing there, watching them, comprehension already spreading across his freckled face.

"I'm sorry," Fred said again.

"Good," Sirius muttered gruffly. He kissed Morrighan's forehead gently and said, "Don't – don't tell anyone."

"Not a soul," Fred agreed, before taking his leave and leaving the loving couple alone on the stairs.

"You should have ended things properly with him," Sirius sighed. "At least it's all over now." He carefully lifted her up in his arms, got to his feet, and carried her the rest of the way to his room, holding and kissing her gently, undemanding, and unassumingly all night long.

The following morning, they began putting up Christmas decorations. Harry was still shut up in his room, so Sirius and Morrighan sang their Christmas carols (both Muggle and Magical, as Sirius took the opportunity to teach her some) at the top of their lungs.

"I hate Christmas songs," Morrighan sighed at one point. "Truly, always have. They're all the same. The only Christmas song I listen to is Baby, It's Cold Outside."

"What's that?" Sirius said wolfishly. "I like the sound of that one."

"It's a duet," Morrighan said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. "I'll teach it to you sometime."

At just about six, the doorbell rang and Hermione Granger arrived, having decided to forgo her skiing expedition, which Morrighan, not being particularly coordinated herself, thought was a wise decision.

"How is he?" Hermione asked Ginny, Ron, and Morrighan as they took her things and settled her into the room she would be sharing with Ginny.

"He's not come out of his room since we got back from the hospital," Ginny said, sounding a touch annoyed. "We're not really sure what's wrong with him."

"I think he thinks we're sitting around judging him," Ron said with a shrug. "All that attention, bound to make a bloke paranoid."

Morrighan shrugged as they all looked at her.

"He feels like you all can't understand, that you're frightened of him, and that you'd be better off if he were somewhere else, not endangering you all," Morrighan said slowly. "And I know none of that is true, so you all have to go in there and make him realize it. But Hermione, best if you go first. You'll catch him by surprise, for one thing, and you've got a considerable amount of tact for someone your age."

Morrighan had been careful not to say she was the most tactful, because she didn't want to insult Ginny.

Several hours later, the four of them emerged from the room, and Harry seemed much happier, which Sirius was visibly relieved about.

Morrighan woke up to find presents at the foot of Sirius's bed, a stack for each of them (he obviously volunteered to take care of them, and told Molly not to worry about it, since he didn't want Molly finding them in the same bed.

Harry had gotten her a book on Quidditch, Ron had gotten her a box of chocolate frogs, Ginny and George had gotten her an array of Zonko's products, Molly and Arthur an insane amount of baked goods and sweats and a Weasley sweater, Hermione had gotten her more textbooks and a charm bracelet, a bottle of wine from Remus (probably meant as a joke), condoms from Tonks (also meant as half a joke), and Fred had gotten her a sweet little necklace. With it, he'd written a note that said just the words "I'm sorry" again, and Morrighan couldn't help but smile a little at that.

"So," she said, turning to Sirius expectantly, "what did you get me?"

He had just finished opening the extra-dark bottle of firewhiskey she'd had Remus get for him from her, using Sirius's money, of course, and his smile was wide.

"Close your eyes," he said, crawling behind her on the bed. Morrighan obliged, curious. "I did get you something," he whispered in her ear, "but it's going to wait until later… I'll tell you right now that it's an assortment of chocolate cauldrons." His lips traced the curve of her neck. "Mmm, but this is something I think you're going to like much better."

His hands came around to the front of her torso, working under her clothing, gently massaging her breasts and eliciting a hungry moan from her lips.

"You're allowed to kiss me," he said softly, "but otherwise, nothing else. Not today, all right?"

Morrighan nodded compliantly as he moved around to the front of her, pushing her gently back onto the bed, and pulling down her lacy green panties. Morrighan flinched a little bit, but the sensation that came next made her forget every second of fear she had felt in the previous action: His hot, wet mouth pressed against her hot, wet folds and she gasped, greedy for more.

Her ex had done this once, but it hadn't been particularly enjoyable. He was clumsy, thinking he would get her to give him what he wanted if he at least tried to get her off, and it hadn't worked out well for him. Sirius, on the other hand, was clearly a natural at this, his tongue reading her mind, it seemed, knowing just where to go, just the right amount of pressure, and he seemed to be enjoying it nearly as much as she was, moaning against her sensitive skin a handful of times.

"Ah, Sirius," she whined, "I – I–"

"Fuck, you taste so good," he murmured, lapping her up greedily. "It's okay, Morrighan. I know you're close. Come on."

He was right. She was so close. This had never happened before.

That's not to say that she hadn't orgasmed. In fact, Morrighan had been, at one part of her life, a serial masturbator. She had a high sexual drive, and yet a fear of sex. It had been a logical solution. But this, this was so much different, so much better…

… and one little flick of the tongue later she came undone, gasping violently as she came, noting through her blissful delirium that Sirius was eagerly drinking in her flowing juices. When she was spent, she collapsed against the bed, and looked up at his smiling face, which had crawled up so that he was hovering over her face.

"You really taste absolutely delicious," he whispered, kissing her neck softly. "Did you enjoy that?"

"Mmmm," she sighed, unable to form a coherent word, and he just grinned, pleased with himself.

When she'd showered and put on a more appropriate set of sleep clothes (for she wasn't going to go downstairs smelling of sex and sweat on Christmas morning), Morrighan joined Sirius downstairs, to find that Molly, Remus, Fred, George, and Hermione were already there. An owl dropped in before Morrighan had even gotten her morning greeting out of her mouth and dropped a package in front of Molly, who frowned at it slightly.

Morrighan knew what it was, and she braced herself as Molly pulled it closer. The owl flew away.

"Oh," Molly squeaked in a small voice, tears welling up in her eyes. "Oh, Arthur."

It was Percy's Weasley sweater. He had sent it back, and Molly began to sob as the twins took the parcel out of her hands to see what had upset their mother so much.

"No note or anything!" Molly sobbed, and Morrighan rushed to hold the hysterical woman, to comfort her as best she could. "He just – he just–"

"He's a right prat," Fred said darkly.

"He's not worth more than a humungous pile of rat droppings–"

But George's misguided words of comfort were cut off by his mother's horrible cry of anguish, and Remus and Morrighan began feeding her all the comfort they could think of as the twins made to warn the younger boys of the dangerous situation in the kitchen.

Hermione rushed upstairs, saying she forgot something, and by the time that she came back with Harry and Ron in tow, Remus had taken Sirius upstairs to have a chat with him about something that Morrighan strongly suspected had to do with either herself, or Tonks, or both.

"Morning," Morrighan said as the trio walked in, and Molly's greeting sounded more like a woman with a terrible cold.

They made their way over to Kreacher's room and began looking around his things, speaking in incredibly soft tones, but Morrighan knew what they were saying, so it didn't bother her that she couldn't hear. In the meantime, Sirius came back in, and motioned for Morrighan to help him with the things in the pantry, giving her a quick but passionate kiss before they reemerged.

"I think I'll just leave his present here," Hermione said, laying the gift down in the rags. "He'll find it later, that'll be fine…"

"Come to think of it," said Sirius as he readjusted his hold on the turkey, "has anyone actually seen Kreacher lately?"

"I haven't seen him since the night we came back here," said Harry. "You were ordering him out of the kitchen."

"Yeah…" said Sirius, frowning. "You know, I think that's the last time I saw him, too… He must be hiding upstairs somewhere…"

"He couldn't have left, could he?" said Harry. "I mean, when you said 'out', maybe he thought you meant, get out of the house?"

"Well," Morrighan said softly, well aware that Hermione and Harry were watching her expectantly, "generally speaking, the house-elf is tied to the house of the family they serve…"

She knew exactly where creature was and wanted to say, but she knew that if Harry wasn't called to the Ministry at all too many things would change, and she wasn't comfortable with the sort of effect that might have.

"They can leave the house if they really want to," Harry said thoughtfully. "Dobby did, he left the Malfoys' to give me warnings three years ago. He had to punish himself afterward, but he still managed it."

Sirius frowned slightly, but then he said, "I'll look for him later, I expect I'll find him upstairs crying his eyes out over my mother's old bloomers or something… Of course, he might have crawled into the airing cupboard and died… but I mustn't get my hopes up…"

The Weasley boys all laughed and Morrighan just shook her head a little; Hermione looked reproachful.

After lunch, the whole group except for Sirius and Morrighan went off to St. Mungo's again, and Morrighan sighed, curling up on Sirius, who had lain down on the carpet in the drawing room. They stared at the ceiling together.

"Are we missing anything fun, these hospital visits?" Sirius said with a groan, hugging her tightly.

"Well," she said, trying to recall every detail, "Arthur tried stiches between last time and today, and Molly's going to be furious when she finds out he's experimented with Muggle methods. They won't work, of course…. But I don't see why it was really a bad thing to try."

"What are stiches?"

"It's a Muggle medical practice," Morrighan explained. "Erm, when a cut's really deep, they pull the skin together and sew it shut, literally stitching the person back together. Mostly, they use it during surgery, where they have to cut someone open to work inside of them, and then they sew them back together."

"Sounds painful."

"It can be," Morrighan agreed. "They try to numb you first, if you're not knocked out or something, but if you're not numb it's incredibly painful." She ran her hand absently through his dark locks and said, "The kids are going to end up in the long-term ward for a bit, too. They'll run into Lockhart. Anyway, they'll see the Longbottoms. Harry already knows about them, but the others don't yet…"

"Ah, Frank and Alice," Sirius said sadly. "They were such lovely people. When I heard… when they led my cousin past my cell… oh, I was furious. I wanted to rip her apart myself, but I was useless, sitting in that cell…"

His voice trailed off and she just watched him, wishing she could take away all of the pain he'd gone through. He shook his head slightly, smiled a little and said, "I'm so glad I have you, darling."

He softly pressed his lips to hers and she couldn't help but smile, too.


	13. Occlumency Lessons

Kreacher turned up in the attic and Morrighan kept her mouth shut. Harry was also uneasy about Kreacher's behavior after his reappearance, but Sirius either didn't notice or didn't want to. He was more focused on the fact that Harry would be leaving soon, which Morrighan could tell he was split about. On the one hand, he didn't want to lose Harry again. On the other, he wanted everyone out of the house so he and Morrighan could have alone time again.

What he didn't want was Severus to turn up, but turn up he did, just as Morrighan knew he would. When he said he needed Harry, Sirius was obvious suspicious. Morrighan would have tried making them be civil, but she knew there was no point in it.

By the time Harry came in the kitchen, Sirius and Severus were sitting at opposite ends of the long kitchen table, and Morrighan was sitting on the table, somewhere toward the middle, her feet dangling lazily off the end, trying to distract Sirius a bit with her legs, but it wasn't working. The two men were glaring holes at each other, and the letter that Albus had sent was hanging out on the table in front of Sirius.

"Er," Harry muttered, letting the men know he was there.

Severus turned to look at Harry.

"Sit down, Potter."

"You know," Sirius said, leaning his chair back on two legs and looking at the ceiling, "I think I'd prefer it if you didn't give orders here, Snape. It's my house, you see."

Severus's face flushed with hatred as Harry sat down next to Sirius. Morrighan didn't move from the center of the table.

"I was supposed to see you alone or with Morrighan, Potter," said Snape with a sneer playing at his lips, "but Black–"

"Please, Severus, just get to the point," Morrighan pleaded, and he regarded her with an unreadable expression.

"Black can stay, I suppose," Severus said, sneer returning. "I know how he likes to be involved."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sirius said, his chair returning to four legs with a loud start, glaring at Severus once more.

"Merely that I'm sure you must feel – ah – frustrated by the fact that you can do nothing _useful_," Severus drawled, "for the Order."

Sirius flushed with anger this time, and Severus's smirk turned triumphant for but a split second before Morrighan cleared her throat and raised her eyebrow as a warning. His smirk faltered as he turned to Harry.

"The headmaster has sent me to tell you, Potter, that it is his wish for you to study Occlumency this term."

"Study what?" asked Harry dumbly.

"Occlumency, Potter," Severus said, sneer quickly returning. "The magical defense of the mind against external penetration. An obscure branch of magic, but a highly useful one."

"Why do I have to study Occlu – thing?" Harry said quickly.

"Because the headmaster thinks it a good idea," Severus said in his silky voice. "You will receive private lessons once a week, but you will not tell anyone what you are doing, least of all Dolores Umbridge. You understand?"

"Yes," said Harry. "Who's going to be teaching me?"

Severus raised an eyebrow.

"I am."

Harry looked as though he'd swallowed something incredibly unpleasant, and turned to Morrighan as if hoping she'd say he was only joking and that someone else was actually teaching him.

"It's all right, Harry," she said. "Severus is a highly accomplished Occlumens."

"I suppose it is a headmaster's privilege to delegate less enjoyable tasks," Severus continued smoothly. "I assure you I did not beg for the job." He stood. "I will expect you six o'clock on Monday evening, Potter. My office. If anybody asks, you are taking Remedial Potions. Nobody who has seen you in my classes could deny you need them."

He turned swiftly to leave.

"Wait a moment," Sirius said, sitting up a little bit straighter.

Severus turned around, sneer more pronounced than ever.

"I am in rather a hurry, Black… unlike you, I do not have unlimited leisure time…"

"I'll get to the point, then," said Sirius, standing. He was quite a bit taller than Severus, which Morrighan hadn't really noticed before, and she could see Severus holding his wand beneath his cloak already. How was she going to get between them without being hexed? "If I hear you're using things Occlumency lessons to give Harry a hard time, you'll have me to answer to."

"How very touching," Severus said sarcastically. "But surely you have noticed that Potter is very like his father?"

"Severus please," Morrighan said, getting to her feet now. "Don't go there."

But he wasn't listening.

"You'll know he's so arrogant that criticism simply bounces off him," Severus said smoothly.

Sirius tossed his chair to the side and the two men made their way toward each other, wands coming out as they went. Morrighan rushed toward them, her own wand out, and Harry said, "Sirius!" quite loudly as she reached them, but the boy's plea fell on deaf ears.

"I've warned you, _Snivellus_," Sirius hissed, their faces not even a foot apart, "I don't care if Dumbledore thinks you've reformed, I know better–"

"Oh, but why don't you tell him so?" whispered Severus. "Or are you afraid that he might not take the advice of a man who's been hiding inside his mother's house for six months very seriously?"

"Tell me, how is Lucius Malfoy these days? I expect he's delighted his lapdog's working inside Hogwarts, isn't he?"

"Sirius, please," Morrighan groaned, attempting to physically pry the two men apart with her tiny frame. But it did little to help. Sirius raised his wand.

"NO!" Harry cried, vaulting over the table to help her pry them apart. "Sirius, don't–"

"I've noticed you've grown rather attached to the house, Black," Severus hissed. "Didn't even bother trying to sneak out when Dumbledore wasn't looking, didn't try to get some fresh air at King's Cross…"

"Are you calling me a coward?" Sirius roared, pushing away at Harry, who was putting up a fight as Morrighan forced her little frame between the two men so that she was literally sandwiched between them.

"Why, yes, I suppose I am," said Severus.

"Morrighan – Harry – get – out – of – it!" Sirius snarled, pushing Harry away with his free hand, but unable to manage riding himself of the pair of them in one go, so that Morrighan was still pressed tightly between the two men.

The kitchen door opened and the Weasleys with Hermione all came in, Arthur wearing pajamas and looking rather cheerful.

"Cured!" he announced brightly to no one in particular. "Absolutely cured!"

But the newcomers all froze, staring at the scene before them, the two grown men facing off, wands out, and Morrighan pressed tightly between them, Harry attempting to regain his balance just off to the side.

"Merlin's beard," said Arthur, his smile vanishing rapidly, "what's going on here?"

Both men tucked their wands away quickly, their faces still livid with the hatred Morrighan knew was coursing through their veins. Severus stepped away, turning, heading out, pausing at the doorway only to say, "Six o'clock Monday evening, Potter."

Sirius glared after him, wand still at his side, body still flush against Morrighan's in the crowded kitchen, obviously not realizing the position they were in.

"What's been going on?" asked Arthur again.

"Nothing, Arthur," said Morrighan, who was breathing rather heavily. "Just a chat between old schoolmates." She smiled a bit, trying to forget what had just occurred. "So you're cured? That's fabulous! Come on, I'll make some tea."

"That would be lovely, dear," Molly said, helping Arthur into a chair. "Healer Smethwyck worked his magic in the end, found an antidote to whatever that snake's got in its fangs, and Arthur's learned his lesson about dabbling in Muggle medicine, _haven't you dear_?" she added almost viciously.

"Yes, Molly dear," said Arthur meekly.

Sirius was a bit sullen that night, and Morrighan thought she knew why. He was wishing he had left the house when he'd had the chance, that he'd taken the risk and gone to King's Cross. She knew they would have to have a long talk when the others were asleep.

She found him after dinner in the drawing room again, staring out of the window at the moon.

"I should have gone," he said softly. "He's right, I am a coward."

Morrighan shook her head, sitting down on his lap.

"No, he's wrong," she whispered, kissing his cheek gently. "If you had gone, he would have called you a coward anyway, saying you were trying to get yourself seen to ensure that you never had to leave the house. Don't listen to Severus, love," she muttered, brushing her lips against his ear lobe. "You ought to know better than to listen to a thing he says about you."

"Mmm," he muttered, and she thought he must not be convinced. Something was bothering him still.

"What's wrong, love?" she asked, nuzzling her nose against his and resting her forehead on his as she molded their bodies against each other in the moonlight.

"What?" he muttered, as if coming out of a trance. "Oh, nothing, I was just… I've just had something on my mind a lot and…"

He stared at the moon for a moment before looking deep into her eyes and saying softly, "I love you, Morrighan."

Her breath caught in her throat.

Had she actually heard that, or had it been wishful thinking? Or had she fallen asleep already and this was all just a lovely sort of dream?

"I love you so much," he continued, kissing a trail down the curve of her neck. "I should have said it before, should have said it every morning as you woke up and every night before you fell asleep because I think I've known for a while now but just wasn't sure… I mean I didn't know… I – I don't know what I'm trying to say." She thought she saw a tinge of pink of his cheeks. "You make me nervous, darling."

Morrighan couldn't help but smile a little at that as she cuddled even closer to him, her lips grazing his ear once more as she whispered, "I love you too, Sirius."

The way he hugged her after those words was different from how he usually hugged her. It was tender, passionate, and yet as if he was trying to keep her there forever and never let her go.

She knew in that moment what he needed, and what she wanted, and it was as if nothing had ever been clearer to her. She pressed him back onto the couch and kissed him hungrily, needy, and didn't even flinch as the passion between them burned hotter and he ground his erection into her. Every part of her wanted this just as badly as he did.

Their clothes were gone in moments and he had her pinned beneath him on the sofa, exploring the curves of her body with his deliciously sinful mouth, venturing along the various contours, familiarizing himself with the lay of the land, so to speak, like a man about to make a map for future journeys.

He began as he had on Christmas, using his mouth to pleasure her and get her worked up to whatever level it was he was so expertly aiming for. Once he determined that she was there, he positioned himself.

"I love you," he whispered against her lips before claiming them firmly as he pressed into her, hard, fast, and steady, unlike any previous experience she'd had. Because he'd gotten her ready, because he'd taken the opportunity to learn her and her wants and needs, having sex with Sirius wasn't having sex at all – they were making love in the absolute purest sense of the phrase. Suddenly, she wondered how it was that no one had ever made her feel like this, when they had all the same parts and didn't seem to be doing anything different at all.

Perhaps her mother was right. Perhaps there was something about it being someone you truly loved that made all the difference in the world.

But she soon lost track of that thought as he pounded in and out of her mercilessly, driving her to the point of incoherent thought, kissing her so thoroughly that she could comprehend nothing in that moment but the taste of his kiss and the feel of him moving inside her and how she wished that neither thing would have to end.

She was shocked when she came first… in fact, she came twice before he finally came inside of her, a sensation she had never had and never really considered fully, she realized.

It felt surprisingly good, surprisingly right.

What also felt good and right and wonderful was curling up against him, his member still inside her, their sweaty bodies still intertwined on the sofa. She didn't ever want to let go, but her mind made her point that her mouth made aloud moments later.

"Molly's going to find us if we don't go to your room."

It was that sort of logic that even Sirius couldn't argue, so they adjourned to his room, where they made love twice more before collapsing tangled up in each other and the sheets, peacefully oblivious to the world beyond the haven of their bed.

The following morning saw the end of their pretending for quite a while, and Sirius woke her, allowed her to shower first, and went downstairs with her, but breaking away to say goodbye to Harry alone.

Morrighan spent that time doing her best to ignoring the knowing smirk of Tonks, who had come to take the students back to Hogwarts, along with Lupin. Morrighan made sure to give Tonks a knowing look of her own at that particular situation, and was pleased to note that the tips of Tonks's hair tinged momentarily red.

When the kids had gone, Morrighan and Sirius entertained Molly and Arthur for a while, until Tonks and Lupin could come back and report that the children were safe at Hogwarts once again.

Except Morrighan knew that that was a half-truth. They were at Hogwarts, yes, and had arrived safely, but it would be a very long time until any of them would truly be safe at Hogwarts again. Really, not until after the final battle would that be possible, even with Albus Dumbledore there looking out for them. He was only human, and there was only so much even he could do to protect them from the likes of Umbridge.

Their visitors stayed until dinner was over, because Molly insisted on one last meal to thank them for all they had done for her and her children while Arthur was hospitalized, and while Morrighan hated saying no to Molly's delicious food, she and Sirius were both incredibly anxious to get everyone out of the house. Being alone couldn't come soon enough.

When they finally had the house to themselves, however, the pair were incredibly exhausted, so they only made love twice before curling up in Sirius's bed and just enjoy each other's company. Morrighan decided that it was her favorite place to be, in Sirius's arms, enjoying his warmth and deliciously intoxicating scent.

"I love you, you know," he whispered, late into the night when they were still lying awake in the dark room, cuddling vigorously. "I didn't think I'd ever fall in love with anybody. That was James's thing. I'd shagged a girl or two, but to be honest I hardly paid attention to girls in school. They were just silly and clingy. For the longest time, nothing but the Marauders mattered to me, and then there was the war and it just didn't make sense to devote myself to anything I wasn't already attached to. I knew Lily and James were constantly in fear that they would lose one of them, or the other, or that something would happen to Harry, and I just didn't think I could handle getting attached to someone and then losing them. But then I lost James, and he was the closest thing to family I'd ever had. I… I never expected to fall in love. I mean, especially being stuck in this house all the time. But… I love you." He shook his head a little as if trying to wrap his mind around the concept. "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you, Morrighan. You're absolutely everything to me."

She kissed his cheek and sighed, wishing she could say something half as beautiful, but resigning herself to say what was on her mind, beautiful or no.

"You know I've been hurt… a lot. There were days I thought it wasn't even worth going on to the next one and weeks where I would just spend hours at a time staring at the ceiling and wonder why I was even around, what good any of it did. I thought I didn't belong, felt I didn't fit in anywhere, even though I had friends and family and everything. I mean, the only person I really felt a strong connection with was my niece, and she's barely three years old. I honestly told myself I was never going to fall in love again. And I was right."

Sirius stiffened.

"What?"

Morrighan turned over, kissed him lightly on the lips and whispered, "I'll never fall in love again, because this is the only time I've ever really been in love, and it took knowing and loving you to realize that all of that pain, all of even the best emotions from before, were just a shadow of every wonderful feeling I feel when I'm with you."

He rolled her over and pushed her into the mattress slightly as he hovered over her, kissing her desperately. They didn't need to say anything else, to express anything else in any way but their kisses. When two people feel so much for each other, words just don't mean as much. They're just not necessary when a touch can say so much.


	14. A Dangerous Turn

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to **_**BulletTheBlueSkyU2**_**, who's constant and enjoyable conversation has been the driving force in the last two updates. Thank you, Kaylee, and enjoy.**

**-J**

The following morning, Morrighan woke up with a sense of foreboding, and it didn't take her long to remember why.

It was January 11th, and the newspaper would bring horrible news. Unsure of why she was, Morrighan began to cry into the sheets, trying not to wake Sirius with her tears. Apparently, however, they had become so attuned to each other's presence that when she woke, so did he and he quickly wrapped his arms around her, turning her to face him and hugging her tightly to him.

"Love, what's wrong?" he whispered anxiously, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Did you have another nightmare? I thought they'd stopped."

"They did," she whispered. "You'll see what's wrong later."

His brow furrowed, but he continued to hold her, unquestioningly, until she was calm enough to realize that she was hungry and mentioned that it was about time for breakfast. He cast a heating charm on her because he liked it when she walked around in just a nightie, and she was wearing the blue one, which was his favorite.

They settled in and Sirius opened the Prophet and dropped it like it had burned him.

"Oh, love," he whispered. "You… you knew this happened, didn't you?"

There was no need to ask what he meant. Eleven Death Eaters had broken out of Azkaban and a Ministry worker had been strangled in his hospital bed by Devil's Snare (he hadn't gotten to that part yet, but he would one he kept reading). Morrighan nodded sadly.

"That crazy bitch," he spat at the paper. "Well, I guess this means the dementors have officially turned. I suppose we'll be having a meeting tonight."

Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, Remus tore into the kitchen, blinking briefly at Morrighan sitting in the middle of the kitchen in January wearing practically nothing, but then shook his head a little, turned to Sirius and said, "Meeting tonight, Tonks has just passed it along to me and I thought I'd let you two know, but I'm sure you've just seen the paper."

"Didn't need the paper," Sirius said gruffly. "I've got my own little Seer right here. She knows everything, remember?"

"I didn't tell you, though," Morrighan pointed out, getting up to make Remus a cup of tea and ignoring the fact that both men were watching her as she did so. "You didn't know what happened until you saw the paper."

She heard a slapping sound and turned to find Sirius had smacked Remus across the face, and Remus was blushing furiously.

"Erm, did I miss something?" she asked.

"Nothing," Remus said eagerly as Sirius said, "Yes."

"Um, right then," she said, handing Remus his tea, leaning over the table a little to do so, and noting that Remus's eyes flickered to her chest as she did so. Sirius smacked him again.

Ah.

"I'm going to get dressed, Sirius," Morrighan said as casually as she could manage. "Would you mind making me some toast?"

He looked as if he was going to protest, but he agreed, and she saw him glare viciously at Remus before she left the room. She came back several minutes later with a sweater dress on, and pressed her ear to the door to find out what they were saying in her absence.

" – love with her, Moony."

"Sirius, I know you've been alone a very long time, but there's no way you two would ever work. Be rational. She's young, she's talented, she's beautiful. Once Albus can get her into the real world, she could have someone her own age, someone who can care for her, not an emaciated, war-scared old man who could be her father."

"No," he snapped. "I couldn't be her father."

"You're old enough that you would have been at school when she was born, so yes, Sirius, you were sexually mature enough to have been her father."

"STOP SAYING THAT!"

"Sirius," she said, rushing into the room, "don't worry about it. I don't think of you that way so shut up."

The boys blinked up at her.

"Remus, I love and adore Sirius," she said simply. "He's really not old enough to be my father in this reality, and even if he were it wouldn't change a thing. There's nothing about his age that means anything to me about why I love him so much. Age is really just a number."

Sirius smiled a little and Remus watched them, shocked, as Morrighan sat on Sirius's lap, allowing him to wrap his arms around her and bury his face in her hair.

"I guess the secret's out now, love," she sighed. "Between Fred and Tonks and Remus, I doubt we'll be able to keep it quiet long."

"Well, yeah," Sirius said with a smirk. "Tonks is a gossiper, for sure."

Remus cleared his throat.

"I think you're forgetting," he said stiffly, "that Tonks and I are a part of a top secret organization. I think we can probably manage not talking if you'd like us not to talk. I'm afraid I can't speak for Fred, though."

"Fred won't say anything," Morrighan whispered, kissing Sirius's lips lightly and briefly. "He still feels bad about how he found out."

"Guilt is a powerful motivator," Sirius said. "Anyway, when do you expect this meeting will be?"

"After dinner sometime," Remus said. "Dumbledore's supposed to be coming. Between the breakout and Bode–"

"What?" Sirius cried.

"Ministry worker strangled by Devil's Snare in his hospital bed," Morrighan sighed. "L – er – someone sent him Devil's Snare disguised as a potted plant because he was getting better. He's an Unspeakable."

"Well, that's certainly big news," Sirius said darkly. "Yeah, I guess the meeting it is. Are you going to be around today, Remus?"

"Yes," Remus said, clearing his throat. "If that's all right. I feel I've been neglecting Morrighan's studies and I thought we'd make a day of it…"

"Absolutely," Morrighan said earnestly. She knew Sirius would have wanted to spend the day with her, but it felt irreverent to spend the day having sex when such horrible things had happened while they were sleeping. Besides, she did want to be qualified when she finally was able to come out in the open, which Morrighan thought might be in a manner of months, if things didn't change too much by her efforts.

Remus covered most of her subjects by the time dinner came along. He had to lock Sirius out of the room, because he'd kept coming in and kissing her at random, seemingly unwilling to be parted from Morrighan for more than an hour.

And then there was the meeting.

Morrighan had never seen Albus Dumbledore as grave as he was that night, the whole of the Order of the Phoenix gathered around the kitchen table of Grimmauld Place, except for Severus, whom Morrighan knew was busy prying into Harry's mind in a Hogwarts office, making the poor boy angry, uncomfortable, and terrified. He had reported to Albus early that day, probably whilst Umbridge was "teaching".

"The dementors are under Voldemort's control," he said calmly, though his blue eyes were clearly troubled. "As you all saw in the papers, there has been a mass breakout at Azkaban, including some of the most dangerous prisoners. Morrighan," he said softly, "who should our greatest concerns be, of the group which has just broken out?"

Morrighan took a deep breath at being put on the spot, every eye turning to her. The greatest concerns? How about all of them?

"Erm," she said, fidgeting a bit, "Bellatrix Lestrange, obviously, and I guess Dolohov and Rookwood."

Sirius looked over at her questioningly, but she wouldn't tell him. He would want to know what his cousin would do, why she was such a threat, but Morrighan couldn't risk changing anything more than she had to.

And then she realized that she had to save Sirius, because she honestly didn't think she would be able to go on without him. It wasn't just what she wanted to do; she absolutely needed to do it. Listening to the meeting became more difficult after that realization. All she wanted was to curl up with him and kiss him senseless, to never let him leave her sight.

But the meeting went on.

"Bode," Arthur said imploringly. "What happened to Bode? He was in the hospital while I was, wasn't he?"

"Yes, but they didn't kill him randomly, Arthur," Morrighan said. "They weren't just killing him because he was a Ministry employee. Think of Sturgis. Someone Imperiused him, and they did the same to Bode, but they didn't know that only one about whom the prophecy is made can touch the prophecy, and he went mad trying to get it, so when he started getting better, they had to get rid of him."

They were all looking at her again. Morrighan had a hard time getting used to that idea.

"Yes, I think Bode suffered an unfortunate death after his recovery began, and we will certainly have to be more on guard," Dumbledore said with a nod.

The Order went on to discuss other things, but Morrighan had little care for them. She had always thought Order meetings would be this exciting, top secret briefing where the members planned their great war strategies and gathered the wisdom of Albus Dumbledore, but that wasn't how it worked at all. They were actually rather dull.

Morrighan found her mind (and eyes) wandering to Sirius, and how hard this might be for him, knowing his crazy, murderous cousin was out and able to cause trouble. He must have known it would happen eventually – after all, they had been talking about the dementors joining Voldemort for some time – but no one would have dared guess that it would happen so soon, for fear that they might be right. She could almost feel the tension in the room throughout the meeting, and a part of her very much wanted to go home in that moment and be in her old world, safe with her family.

But how could she go back to her old life, her old world, without Sirius? Now that she knew she could love and that it wasn't all an experience for someone else, could she really give that up, even to have her family back? Even to be safe and ordinary again? Did she even want to be safe and ordinary, really? Wasn't this what she had wanted since she was a little girl, to live in this amazing world?

Morrighan met Sirius's eyes and he smiled at her. She couldn't help but smile back. There would be no leaving Sirius, even if it made the most sense, even if it were possible. Happiness was more important than safety, and nothing in the world had every made her happier than being in Sirius's arms. She would track Voldemort down and kill him off herself if it meant she could spend just one more day with Sirius.

And when the meeting was over, Morrighan did all of her hostess-like duties with one eye on Sirius as he watched her openly over his cup of tea. She knew he was waiting for everyone else to file out, to leave them alone, as Remus had sworn to do. It was all she could do not to shiver in anticipation as she said goodbye to Professor Dumbledore, who was quite surprisingly the last to leave. She thought she saw a knowing twinkle in his eye as he said goodnight, and he certainly winked at her as he turned to go.

That man really did know everything.

As soon as they were alone, Sirius wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck.

"Can we go upstairs, darling?" he whispered, and she nodded eagerly.

He never carried her anywhere, although many women would have found that romantic. Sirius had paid attention, however, when she had enumerated her fears to him in their earlier days together (although he couldn't understand the fear of penguins or mimes), and he knew her incredible fear of heights was doubled when someone was carrying her and she was at all alert. If she had fallen asleep, it would have been a sweet gesture for him to carry her to bed. Wide awake, it was a way to scare her out of her wits, so he simply accompanied her, his arm around her shoulders as they walked.

When they reached his room, he picked out a black nightie, one of his favorites, and handed it to her with those puppy dog eyes she couldn't have refused if she'd wanted to, and she began stripping down and changing. He stripped down to his boxers, climbed under the covers, and lifted the covers for her to join him when she was dressed in the scant amount of material he had selected for her. Sirius began kissing her neck, and she tilted her head back, giving him more access to the tender, eager skin. After several minutes, though, she felt something she hadn't before: teardrops.

"Sirius," she whispered, petting his hair, comfortingly, and he went from kissing his way down her neck to sobbing openly into her chest. "Love, it's all right. Shh… it's all right. Just tell me what's wrong, love."

"I'm so scared," he whimpered. "I don't want to lose you. I can't. I can't lose you. I – I lost so much in the last war and… I – I know my cousin. I know what she's capable of, and I know she's going to be anxious to prove herself, to kill me and Andy and Dora, and probably Ted and I – I… if she ever found out about you, she'd stop at nothing to kill you and I just couldn't lose you, Morrighan. I can't."

"I'm not going anywhere," Morrighan whispered, hugging him tightly. "I'm not leaving you. I'm not going to be killed. She's not getting me, love. Everything's going to be fine. I promise."

He smiled sadly up at her, kissing her cheek softly.

"I wish that was a promise you had the power to keep, darling," he sighed. "I wish I could be sure that we would make it through all of this alive, but nothing is certain. I know that from last time. The things you think are facts, unchangeable and undeniable facts are as flexible and fickle as the wind. I could lose you, and I might lose you, and everything I know could be a lie. If I pretend like none of that's true, it would be just like last time if the worst happened. But Merlin, Morrighan, I am going to spend every second of every day praying that I don't lose you, because I don't know what I would do. I couldn't move on this time. It would be too much."

She kissed his lips tenderly, softly, so lightly that their skin barely touched, but with all of the electricity of their most passionate embraces.

"It's going to be all right. You and I are going to be just fine, love."

And they curled up together, exchanging kisses and stories from their youths, only the happiest stories they could think of. They'd both had enough of sad for a good long while, although they both had plenty of sad stories to stay awake telling. Now wasn't the time. The war had truly begun.

When Sirius hand fallen asleep, his head resting on her chest and his arms wrapped childlike around her torso, hugging her to him, Morrighan petted him gently, her fingers running through his hair as she watched him sleep. The fear and worry he had expressed while awake had melted away from his face as he fell asleep in her arms, and although she thought the two events were probably unrelated, Morrighan couldn't help but feel a little bit proud at the thought that her presence might cause him the same sort of peaceful feeling his caused for her. Even while he was sleeping, she couldn't help feeling better knowing that he was near. It was something about his scent.

That night, she dreamed of her and Sirius, after the war, raising a dozen little black-haired children with her green eyes and his aristocratic cheekbones, living in a house in the country, somewhere not too far from the Weasley's. Sirius raised them to be a Quidditch team, and Morrighan taught them all about the Muggle world, and they settled down into a happy life. Remus and Tonks had a house next door with three children, Teddy being the oldest, of course, and Harry and Ginny were down the way a bit with their own three children.

She had never been the kind of person who dreamed of a life with children and a nice house, or even a husband, but she had never felt so much joy and peace in a single dream before, and in with Sirius in her arms, what else could Morrighan have dreamed of? The nightmares that should have come with the escape of Bellatrix, whom Morrighan was actually terrified of, would never have surfaced in his arms.

Still, he made a good point. Morrighan had focused so much on the deaths of the people she loved, the characters of this world she had grown close to before even meeting, and most importantly of Sirius. She had been focusing on what would happen if she couldn't save Sirius. But this was a war. People would die, even if she managed to save Sirius, and probably people she cared very much about. In fact, she was almost sure of it.

But Sirius hadn't been thinking about any of that and he raised a point she hadn't thought of. What if she died? What would happen if Morrighan Capilla, the girl who belonged to another world, died?


	15. I Love You Too

For a month, life went on as it had, with Order meetings, lessons with Remus and Sirius and occasionally Severus, and secluded, intimate moments with Sirius when no one else was in the house. She woke up one Saturday morning in February with a strong feeling of significance: Something important would happen that day, but she couldn't put her finger at first on what that something might be.

Something was also strange about how she woke up, and when Morrighan put her finger on that, she realized what was significant. For one thing, Sirius was not in the bed, but he had left a little hastily scribbled note that said, _Stay where you are. Be right back. Happy Valentine's Day, darling._

Morrighan sighed and was just sitting up when Sirius came back in, a tray of breakfast and chocolate in hand. In fact, most of the tray had chocolate of some kind: Chocolate chip pancakes, chocolate-covered strawberries, toast with Nutella (why had she ever introduced him to that stuff?), and actual slabs of Honeydukes chocolate. She moaned.

"Are you trying to put me into a sugar coma so you can have your way with me?"

"Not at all!" he said brightly. "I'm going to have my way with you whilst you are fully awake and functional."

Morrighan shivered slightly, thinking about how Harry was getting ready for his own interesting Valentine's Day, and his first – and last – date with Cho Chang.

"What's up?" he said, crawling into bed beside her and putting the chocolate hazelnut spread on some toast for her, pressing it to her lips.

"Just thinking about Harry," she said with a small smirk. "He's going to have his first date today, but it won't go well."

"Oh, that's too bad," he sighed. "Do you remember your first date?"

Morrighan frowned, trying to think back. What even was her first date?

"You know," she said slowly, "I don't think I've ever actually been on something that could be classified as a 'date'. I've had boyfriends, but we never went out or anything."

"What?" Sirius cried. "That's preposterous. As soon as we're out of this place, you and I are having an amazing date. I'll take you anywhere you want to go, and we'll spend exorbitant amounts of galleons, and I'm going to make you feel like a princess."

She smiled a little bit, kissing some chocolate off the corner of his mouth.

"You already do," she whispered, snuggling close to him. "What was your first date like?"

"Terrible," he said with a chuckle. "The girl convinced me to go to that horrible teashop in Hogsmeade… I don't remember what it's called, I never went there again, but there were these disgusting cherubs all over the place. Anyway, she was the most obnoxious person I'd ever met, and she was convinced we were soulmates because she'd seen my face in her crystal ball in Divination… I don't think she considered that it might have been because I sat behind her in class."

They laughed together, feeding each other until noon, when Tonks came around to chat.

"Tonks, dear," Morrighan said, making a pot of tea, "you do realize what today is?"

"Yes," said Tonks sweetly.

"Then why don't you go bother someone else and leave me alone with Sirius?"

"So you've had crazy, passionate sex now, have you?" Tonks teased. Morrighan tossed a wooden spoon at her playfully, which Tonks easily batted away. "I just need to know… scale of one to ten?"

Morrighan smirked as she turned back to the kettle.

"Fifteen, at least."

"_No_!"

"What?" Morrighan said slyly. "Is Remus not that good?"

Tonks's jaw dropped for a moment, then crossed her legs and glared, saying, "I forgot you know everything. I need to just stop talking with you, obviously. He's wonderful. That's all you need know, my dear."

Morrighan snorted as she set tea in front of her funny friend and said, "You're such a hypocrite. Could you at least pretend to be a normal person for a little while? It would be so refreshing."

"Sniveling still, are you two?" Sirius said. "Can you at least make me some tea, love, while you're up?"

He sat down a second after saying that, and Morrighan couldn't help but shake her head slightly before making him a cup of tea as well.

Tonks stayed well into the afternoon, and they played cards, talked about the Order, and swapped childhood stories. Morrighan realized Remus must be busy, and that Tonks was trying to fill her time alone, so she didn't continue hinting at wanting Tonks to leave, because she couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for her. One of the nice things about Morrighan's relationship with Sirius was that neither of them was allowed to leave the building, so they always were around each other, even if they couldn't be intimate because others were in the house.

But she left eventually, and Sirius treated Morrighan to a lovely day of pampering. Other than having her get him tea while Tonks was around, Sirius wouldn't let her do a thing for him or for herself for the rest of the day and insisted on waiting on her hand and foot. Morrighan was a bit off put at first, as no one had ever really treated her thus, but Sirius made everything feel so natural, and she ended up letting him treat her like his queen.

She had to admit, she felt as though she'd dropped the Valentine's Day ball just a little bit, though. After all, she hadn't gotten him anything, and she certainly hadn't treated him special in any way, as he wasn't even letting her out of his sight long enough to try to surprise him with so much as a glass of firewhiskey or a piece of chocolate. She actually complained late in the evening that she wasn't able to measure up to his own fabulous holiday performance, and he said, "Darling, I've had girls pander to me on this silly holiday for years. I'll be you can't say it's been half as pleasant for you."

He was right about that. Morrighan had had a few boyfriends, but only one had been with her on February the fourteenth. And he did nothing.

In fact, they were together for a year and a half, which included not only that holiday, but also a Christmas, an anniversary, and two birthdays. Christmas can't be forgotten, but he got her nothing. Their anniversary had been the fourth of July, which would have been difficult to forget, and he got her nothing. And both birthdays, he got her nothing, which might have been understandable… except they had the same birthday so he couldn't have forgotten that, either.

He was just a really, really bad boyfriend.

Sirius hadn't had to be told those particular things to guess them after all he knew about her less-than-impressive relationship history. That was part of why they worked so well together. He was good at reading her, good at remembering the details and extrapolating the things she couldn't say or wouldn't say or simply hadn't thought to say. And in turn, she knew much about him and was very good at guessing the rest. They didn't have to say things to each other. They just knew.

They finally curled up in bed that night and Morrighan couldn't help but sigh as his lips began tracing patterns on every part of her skin.

His one Valentine's Day request, of course, was that she go to bed completely nude and let him have his way with her, which wasn't hard, and actually was more of a gift to her than him, she was sure. After all, it was inconceivable that it would feel half as good for him as it did for her.

But she did it, lying down in the bed (for it was no longer just his bed in their minds, and surely not in the minds of the few people who knew), stretching her nude body out before him in a way she hoped was tempting and enticing. She'd never been much of a seductress.

Sirius didn't seem to mind.

He kissed every part of her he could, running his tongue along her skin to pick up every taste of her. It felt incredible. And as he was working on exploring her body, he was peeling off his own clothes hastily. When his clothes were tossed to the floor, he climbed into bed, the smooth heat of his skin making her absolutely melt. It wasn't fair for one human being to be the bringer of such incredible sensations. How could she ever have helped but love him?

Their lips met as he crawled between her legs, which he had just pushed apart, and she moaned into him. Every kiss now, even the shortest, sweetest, most chaste of his kisses, left her mouth with the burning of his passion on her lips, seeping into her and making her insides squirm delightfully.

If only he knew the power of his body… or maybe he did, she mused, as he began to pound into her, sending her waves of pleasure that she had only ever experienced after first having him. Sirius obviously knew what he was doing, and she thought he must have some level of awareness of the pleasure he was bringing her. Morrighan had never been a very vocal partner, but she found herself suddenly wishing she could overcome her shyness about it so that she could let him truly know how amazing he was. Even then, it wouldn't be good enough.

That night, however, it didn't happen. She was as unvocal as always, but Sirius never seemed to mind. In fact, he seemed assured of how much she enjoyed it despite her lack of vocal statement of that fact. But Morrighan resolved to overcome whatever it was that kept her from saying such things allowed, because she knew deep down that he would want to hear them.

So the following morning, when Sirius was sleeping peacefully in her arms, Morrighan steeled herself for the plan that had been forming in her dream: she was going to drag him into the shower and have steamy shower sex.

Waking him with kisses was the first part of the plan. What man didn't like being awoken in such a way?

And Sirius proved not to disappoint. He was groggy at first, but it didn't take long for him to return Morrighan's kisses with more passion and fervor than she had initially put in them, more than she found herself capable of matching. His eyes had yet to open, however, despite the incredibly wondrous activity of his lips, and she managed to coax those beautiful gray eyes open by pulling away from his hungry kisses.

"Please," he moaned, going in for another kiss, but Morrighan pulled away, standing abruptly, and smirking just a little. He gave her a curious smile. She knew if she made it a game to follow her, he'd not be able to help himself. So Morrighan just gave him that playful smirk and turned to go down the hall to the bathroom, feeling his eyes on her as she walked away, and hearing his footsteps following her as she went down the hall. She was just trying to find the right water temperature for the shower when he came up behind her and kissed her neck softly.

"You're teasing me," he whispered, and she could feel his erection digging shamelessly into her back as he held her body tight against his. "Why are you teasing me?"

"What?" she asked in what she hoped was a low, seductive voice. "Can't handle what you dish out?"

She felt him shiver slightly and smiled to herself as she pulled out of his grip and stepped into the shower, feeling the warm water fall in beads on her bare skin. He just watched her, eyes glazed with lust as he stood there, naked, watching her run her fingers through her dampening hair.

"Well?" she said, smirking at him. "Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to help me wash my hair?"

Sirius didn't need any further prodding, and he was behind her, kissing her neck once more as he reached for the shampoo. Morrighan moaned a little as his fingers worked up a lather in her hair. For some reason, she hadn't ever expected this to feel quite so good, quite so… erotic. When he'd finished washing her hair, he lathered the rest of her body and ran his hands along her soapy skin.

That absolutely did in Morrighan's plans of seduction, because she simply couldn't think when he was doing that. In fact, she nearly forgot about the point of this whole endeavor, but the sensation of him touching his tongue to her already wet center made her remember instantly.

"Mmm, Sirius," she managed to mumble, throwing her head back in pleasure. He was on his knees at her feet lapping her up and giving her puppy dog eyes. Something about this ought to be slightly disturbing, but she couldn't think about anything other than how incredibly turned on he was making her.

He moaned, the vibrations feeling even better than she would have imagined. How did Sirius manage this every time?

She neared her climax and hissed, "Oh, fuck, Sirius, yes!"

As though encouraged by her outburst, he lapped her up even more eagerly, even more vigorously, and it didn't take long for her to go over the edge.

She didn't scream. She didn't cry out. But she did convulse a bit, and he had to hold her steady as her body reacted to the intense pleasure of her climax. He got off his knees and held her tightly to his body.

"You have no idea," he gasped. "You have no idea how incredibly hot that was."

Morrighan whimpered in need as he pushed her up against the wall. He wasted no time before ramming inside of her, both of them gasping in pleasure as he ground them both to a shared climax.

They rushed through the rest of the washing, as they were both incredibly well spent. Sirius practically had to carry Morrighan back to bed.

"I love you," he muttered, nuzzling her. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," she sighed, hugging him to her like a comfortable pillow.

It occurred to Morrighan in that moment that Sirius always said those words first. Never once had she initiated such an exchange, and it wasn't quite fair to him. Morrighan mentally resolved to tell him three times tomorrow without his initiation, to tell him how much she loved and adored and needed him. It wouldn't be enough, of course, but he would appreciate it. Despite being such a strong, brave man, Sirius was an absolute sucker for such sappy displays of affection.

"It's nice you know," Sirius sighed, "having a quiet day for a change."

It was true, certainly. They'd been very busy lately, doing things for the order. Morrighan and Sirius had been writing up Sirius's memories of the first war for the Order, trying to get accounts from every Order member on the recently escaped Death Eaters for reference. Sirius was a wealth of information on Bellatrix, which Morrighan found to be bitterly ironic.

Remus had stopped coming around so much. He informed Morrighan that she had passed her O.W.L. level knowledge, and that they were already well into N.E.W.T. level material, and that he didn't need to have quite so much of her time. Severus, on the other hand, seemed to be coming around even more often, although he seemed to just enjoy blowing off steam about Harry's less-than-enjoyable Occlumency lessons. Morrighan found it very difficult to keep her mouth shut, but Severus really just seemed to need someone to listen while he vented. She didn't imagine he had ever had many people to do this with, being in Slytherin for one.

But now it was simply her and Sirius, holding each other tightly. It was nice to be alone with him, most of the time. It helped her forget about the war. It helped her forget that they were two very broken people, trapped in a house for their own safety.

"Do you ever wonder what is going on out there?" she sighed. "I mean, I know because I've read it, but I can't help but wish I could experience things sometimes."

Sirius nodded.

It was a stupid question, of course. Morrighan knew he wanted out of that house.

"But it's better to be in here, with you safely in my arms," he whispered, nuzzling her ear, "than to be outside this house, in the thick of things, without you."

Morrighan felt a surge of pride. It wasn't that she was using his affections improperly, but she had gotten to a point where she was almost certain she could keep him in the house when the time came. She would be able to keep him alive. That was, after all, her main goal.

But what if he decided the temptation for the outside world, saving Harry, was too great? Would she be enough to keep him in Grimmauld Place then?

"Sirius," she whispered, running her fingers gently along his bare chest, "do you remember your promise to me?"

He nodded.

"Is something coming?" he muttered. "Should I be worried?"

"No, nothing's coming for a bit," she sighed, kissing his jawline. "I just wanted to be sure. It's been on my mind a lot lately and I… I don't want…. I mean, I love you so much, Sirius, and I…"

She couldn't seem to think of the words she wanted and needed to say, but Sirius seemed to understand, pressing his lips hotly but gently to hers. She melted into him, kissing him back with all the passion she could muster.

"I know," he whispered, when they finally pulled apart. "I love you too."


	16. Forward Motion

The release of Harry's interview in the Quibbler brightened everyone's moods. Sirius read it aloud to Morrighan about six times, although she told him she already knew what it said. After all, she knew better than he did what happened in that graveyard. Still, she humored him and listened to him tell her all about it.

"I wonder how this is working out for Harry at Hogwarts," Sirius said after the fourth re-reading.

Morrighan sighed, stretching out like a cat across his lap.

"In some ways, well, and in others not well at all. I mean, obviously Umbridge isn't taking it too well, but more people are starting to believe him, and that's important, for his psyche if nothing else."

Sirius kissed her forehead before diving into another re-read.

Morrighan couldn't help but count down the weeks at that point. It was almost March, and it would only be a few brief months until Sirius's torture would be faked inside of Harry's mind. Her time for cementing her importance and gaining her control over Sirius's choices – the two things she was counting on to save Sirius from his fate – was coming to a close very quickly… too quickly. The certainty she had feel just weeks ago had melted away in light of how fast the event was approaching.

Order meetings didn't help the ominous feeling Morrighan had in the pit of her stomach. Mad-Eye's calls for constant vigilance made her ponder bitterly how vigilance would have no effect on his ability to survive in the end. And this thought didn't make her feel any better, despite the hopes that something other than the thought of Sirius falling through the veil would help.

Severus, as well, was starting to grate on Morrighan, with his increasingly bad attitude about everything. She knew it was the Occlumency lessons, putting him on edge, as well as Umbridge and her meddling. In fact, not long after March hit, Trelawney's sacking had everyone talking. Who would be next? What if it were someone important to the Order? How much would Dumbledore actually be able to do, especially after his very public defense of Trelawney?

Morrighan knew how disheartening Dumbledore's slow loss of power within the school was for the students, but she had never considered the effects on those such as Arthur and Molly, who knew enough about Umbridge to know that horrible things were happening to their children, but not enough to know if they were safe at all. All they could do was watch and wonder how much power Dumbledore had left. It must be unnerving.

Toward the beginning of April, however, Morrighan had completely lost track of the line of events. Kingsley called an emergency Order meeting, however, and Morrighan froze, frowning.

April…. What happened in April?

"Sirius?" Morrighan asked on their way down to the meeting. "What day of the week is it?"

"Monday, I think," Sirius answered. "Why, what's the meeting about?"

Morrighan bit her lip as the pieces of the puzzle clicked together. Hell had just broken loose at Hogwarts.

When she got to the kitchen, she and Kingsley exchanged sad, significant looks and sat down. All of the Order members who were able (namely, none expressly associated with Hogwarts) had gathered, and Kingsley turned back to her.

"Morrighan," he said, "could you explain? You know more of what occurred than I do."

That was probably true, she realized as all of the eyes turned to look at her. Kingsley had been quick on the uptake in the office, but there was so much he hadn't known.

"The defense group Harry started was uncovered – no. They were betrayed today."

Molly Weasley gasped, obviously well aware that her children ignored her warnings to not participate.

"The children are all fine," Morrighan said quickly. "They caught Harry, but Professor Dumbledore took all of the responsibility, and Harry's all right. But Professor Dumbledore had to leave. He's on the run, so to speak. Escaped right under the noses of Fudge and Umbridge. Sorry, Sirius, but I think his escape was slightly more fantastic than yours."

Sirius gave a nervous sort of chuckle. It was entertaining, yes, but it was also a bit unnerving that Albus Dumbledore was no longer at Hogwarts. After all, he was the only one Voldemort ever feared. With him gone… who was keeping the children safe?

"The kids will be fine," Morrighan continued. "I mean, Umbridge will give them absolute hell, but they will be by and large okay. Minerva and Severus are keeping an eye on things."

It wasn't lost on Morrighan that Sirius grumbled something, likely having to do with the fact that he didn't trust Snape with Harry's safety, but she ignored it. There wasn't anything he could do about it, anyway, and allowing him to pout wasn't going to help anyone.

The meeting went on, and Sirius looked contemplative, sullen, as if something tragic had happened. Morrighan had a hard time seeing it from his perspective, as she couldn't quite get over how incredibly badass Albus's escape was, and she knew everything was going to be all right. But she had to try to be sympathetic, because losing touch with Sirius could mean losing him forever. She couldn't afford to not see things from his perspective.

Remus stayed with them for a while after everyone left, under the pretext of needing to review things with Morrighan. Instead, the three of them sat in the kitchen, drinking firewhiskey in silence. Finally, Remus said, "So what happens now?"

Morrighan hesitated. She preferred to think that was a rhetorical question, to not actually have to tell them what was going to happen, but she knew he wanted actual answers. What could she say without giving anything away?

"Well," she finally said, "Umbridge his Headmistress."

"Bugger all," Sirius grumbled into his glass.

"I suppose that will enhance her reign of terror," Remus sighed. "You know, I try to be understanding and reasonable, but I really hate that woman."

Morrighan nodded.

"I hate her more than Voldemort," she said softly.

The two men raised their eyebrows.

"Are you sure?" Remus said evenly.

Morrighan nodded again.

"Her, Bellatrix, and Dolohov. Especially Bellatrix."

"Well, I hate Bella an awful lot," Sirius conceded, "but I'm not sure if I'd go quite that far."

Morrighan frowned and asked, "Why do you call her that? Bella. I mean, isn't it a little bit strange that you call your least favorite family member by her nickname?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows again.

"You know," he said slowly with a shrug, "I hadn't thought about it. I mean, that's just what I always called her, growing up. It's never really occurred to me."

"I suppose that makes sense," Morrighan assented. She sighed, sitting down at the table. In a few days, Harry would be done with Occlumency lessons forever. It was something she would like to learn, though… although… No, she didn't want to learn Occlumency until she had learned Legilimency. And she knew Severus would deny her the privilege of both until she had mastered the Potions curriculum he had set out for her. And as the curriculum was in his head, she had no idea when that would be accomplished.

And, she decided, it would probably be better to wait to ask until after he had gotten over his frustration and anger at Harry.

Surprisingly (Morrighan had forgotten it hadn't been right away), it took weeks after the termination of the lessons for Grimmauld Place to receive a visit from Harry Potter's head. Remus and Morrighan were working on some advanced Charms when they heard Harry asking for Sirius.

Remus jumped.

"Harry!" Morrighan said eagerly, looking down at him. "How are you? No, don't answer that, I already know."

"Yeah," Harry said sheepishly. "I just wondered – I mean, I just fancied a – a chat with Sirius."

"I'll call him," said Remus, jumping to his feet, looking a bit shocked. "He went upstairs to look for Kreacher, he seems to be hiding in the attic again…"

And Morrighan sat down on the floor beside the fireplace while she waited. It didn't take long for Remus to return with Sirius and they joined her.

"What is it?" Sirius said urgently. "Are you all right? Do you need help?"

"No," said Harry, "it's nothing like that… I just wanted to talk… about my dad…"

Sirius and Remus exchanged a surprised look, but Harry went on and told them of what he had seen in Snape's memories, and Morrighan listened eagerly, wondering what it would be like to be in a Pensieve. Since nothing good ever came from such experiences for Harry, though, she decided she could wait a while to find out.

After a moment's pause, Remus said, "I wouldn't like you to judge your father on what you saw there, Harry. He was only fifteen–"

"I'm fifteen!" Harry snapped.

"Harry," Morrighan sighed, "James and Severus hated each other from the first train ride to Hogwarts. Sort of like you and Draco, if you know what I mean. Severus was jealous that James was popular and talented and well-liked, and I think James was a bit… well, jealous of Snape for other reasons, but I can't tell you about that yet. You'll find out when you need to know." She ignored Sirius's surprised look and dove back into her explanation. "Don't put too much into it, Harry."

"Yeah," said Harry, "but he just attacked Snape for no good reason, just because – well, because Sirius said he was bored," he said with a slightly apologetic tone.

"I'm not proud of it," Sirius said quickly.

Remus looked sideways at Sirius, probably wondering if he actually meant it, but then he said, "Look, harry, what you've got to understand is that your father and Sirius were the best in the school at whatever they did – everyone thought they were the height of cool – if they sometimes got a bit carried away–"

"If we were sometimes arrogant little berks, you mean," said Sirius.

Remus smiled and Morrighan said, "Yes, that's exactly what he means."

Sirius swatted in Morrighan's direction playfully without actually hitting her.

"He kept messing up his hair," Harry said, annoyed.

The three adults (it was strange to think of herself as such) laughed.

"I'd forgotten he used to do that," said Sirius affectionately.

"Was he playing with the Snitch?" said Lupin eagerly.

"Yeah," said Harry, obviously stunned by their reactions of nostalgia. "Well… I thought he was a bit of an idiot."

"Of course he was a bit of an idiot!" said Sirius bracingly. "We were all idiots! Well – not Moony so much," he said, looking at Remus, who merely shook his head. Morrighan cut of Remus's protests.

"No, Remus, you weren't really at fault," she said. "Anyway, boys to stupid things when there's a–" She broke off. "Never mind."

The three men gave her confused looks.

"Well," Sirius said, "Remus made us feel ashamed of ourselves sometimes… That was something…"

"And," said Harry stubbornly, "he kept looking over at the girls by the lake, hoping they were watching him!"

"Oh, well, he always made a fool of himself when Lily was around," said Sirius with a shrug. "He couldn't stop himself showing off whenever he got near her."

"How come she married him?" Harry asked miserably. "She hated him!"

"Nah, she didn't," said Sirius.

"She started going out with him in seventh year," said Remus.

"Once James had become more of a human being," Morrighan said with a chuckle.

"And stopped hexing people just for the fun of it," said Remus.

"Even Snape?" asked Harry.

"Well," said Remus fairly, "Snape was a special case. I mean, he never lost an opportunity to curse James, so you really couldn't expect James to take that lying down, could you?"

"And my mum was okay with that?"

"She didn't know too much about it, to tell you the truth," admitted Sirius. "I mean, James didn't take Snape on dates with her and jinx him in front of her, did he?"

But Harry didn't seem properly convinced.

"Look," Morrighan said fairly, "James Potter did a lot of great things for a lot of people. So he was a bit of an idiot at fifteen. So was I. So are most people. He grew up, obviously."

"Yeah, okay," Harry admitted. "I just never thought I'd feel sorry for Snape."

"Now you mention it," said Remus, frowning a little, "how did Snape react when he found you'd seen all this?"

"He told me he'd never teach me Occlumency again," said Harry indifferently, "like that's a big disappoint–"

"He WHAT?" shouted Sirius, causing Morrighan and Harry both to jump.

"Are you serious, Harry?" asked Remus. "He's stopped giving you lessons?"

"Yeah," said Harry, a bit surprised. "But it's okay, I don't care, it's a bit of a relief, to tell you the–"

"I'm coming up there to have a word with Snape!" Sirius cried, and he actually went to stand up, but Morrighan grabbed his arm and Remus pushed him back down by the shoulder.

"You're not going anywhere," Morrighan said urgently.

"If anyone's going to tell Snape it will be me!" Remus said firmly. "But Harry, first of all, you're going to go back to Snape and tell him that on no account is he to stop giving you lessons – when Dumbledore hears–"

"I can't tell him that, he'll kill me!" said Harry, outraged. "You didn't see him when we got out of the Pensieve–"

"Harry, there is nothing so important as you learning Occlumency!" said Remus sharply. "Do you understand me? Nothing!"

"Okay, okay," said Harry. "I'll… I'll try and say something to him… But it won't be…"

He paused.

"Is that Kreacher coming downstairs?"

"No," said Sirius, looking around. "It must be somebody on your end…"

"I'd better go!" Harry cried, hastily disappearing.

Remus and Sirius whirled to face Morrighan.

"What's happening?" Remus demanded. "Why did he have to go so quickly?"

Morrighan chewed her lip a bit.

"Well," she said, "he was using Umbridge's fire. Erm… the Weasley twins set up a diversion so that he could speak to Sirius and… well, they're about to leave."

Sirius grinned a bit, but Remus frowned even deeper.

"Leave? What do you mean, leave? Will Harry be all right?"

"Oh, Harry's fine," Morrighan said casually. "And the twins are, for now. Although, once Molly gets ahold of them…"

Remus's eyes grew wide.

"You meant leave."

"Yes," she said, nodding.

"As in leave Hogwarts."

"She said 'leave' Moony," Sirius said with a bark of laughter. "What part of the word is escaping your understanding?"

Remus scowled at him and said, "Well, Molly's going to be in a rage when we see her next, I suppose."

"Yeah, I guess she probably will be," Morrighan assented. "But don't worry, they're going to be staying in Diagon Alley. They've got a flat above their shop."

"Shop?" Sirius cried happily. "They've really done it all properly, haven't they?"

Morrighan couldn't help smiling at that, but her smile slid off her face when Remus said softly, "He's not going to talk to Snape, is he?"

"Um, no," she said. "No, he's not. But to be fair, I don't think Severus would have taken well to it. Um… he sort of… exploded things when he dismissed Harry from the last lesson, and I think you'd rather he didn't… erm… explode Harry."

Sirius frowned.

"I mean, I can imagine him not wanting people to see that," he reasoned, "but there were far worse things we did to him. I wouldn't say that was worth exploding things over."

Morrighan frowned looking down at her hands as she leaned into Sirius, who instinctively wrapped his arms around her.

"She… well… it's his worst memory," she explained.

"She who?" Sirius asked.

"What?"

"You said 'she'," Remus pointed out.

"Oh," Morrighan muttered. "I was talking about Lily but… it's nothing. You… well, I guess… it gets explained later. It's not my story to tell."

Saying those words hurt the most, because Remus would never know, and Sirius would only know if she succeeded in keeping him in the house. If her plans failed, both would die never knowing the truth about the bravest man in the war.

Sure enough, within three hours, Molly Weasley had come over to Grimmauld Place and begun baking meat pies.

"Erm, Molly," Morrighan said, slowly and politely as possible, "what are you doing here?"

"Baking," Molly snapped.

"Yes, I could see that," Morrighan sighed. "Why are you here?"

"Arthur is sick of my baking," Molly snapped, "and I…." She faltered. "I suppose you know what's happened."

Morrighan nodded. It was about the twins, of course.

"I just don't understand!" she wailed. "Why couldn't they have at least finished school? Their father doesn't have the best-paying job, but at least he works for a respectable establishment–"

"There's nothing respectable about the Ministry these days," Morrighan said coldly.

Molly blinked.

Morrighan sighed and said, "Look, Molly, I understand that you want the best for your sons, but trust me, despite your hesitancy, this dream of theirs, this joke shop, is a really great opportunity for them. I know it's not got the job security of the Ministry, but it's something they're really good at. They've got the sharpest pair of business minds I've ever seen, and that's what my university was known for. I promise you," she said earnestly, "that they are going to be wildly successful. And to be honest, the Ministry isn't the place you ought to want your kids to be working at right now, anyway. It's bad now, but give it a bit of time and it's only going to get a whole lot worse."

Molly nodded sadly.

Morrighan understood where Molly Weasley came from. She had always had bold and adventurous dreams, herself, and her mother had always wanted something with a bit more security for her youngest daughter. But Morrighan knew herself, knew what she was good at. The twins knew too. Molly just had to learn to trust them, and trust the fact that they weren't little boys anymore.

She would have other things to worry about soon, anyway.


	17. Department of Mysteries

For about a week, Morrighan had been miserable. She woke up feeling nauseous, had been incredibly snippy, and even yelled at Sirius one night when he asked if she wanted tea. Sirius, Remus, and Tonks had all learned to treat her very carefully, unsure of what was going to set her off.

She knew the time was coming nearer, and she wanted so badly to be nicer to Sirius, but she just couldn't figure out how to calm herself down. She would just get irate, and she figured it had something to do with the fact that she was sick. When Morrighan got sick, she was mad at the world.

But when she was sitting through the meeting detailing Minerva McGonagall's condition (who was in St. Mungo's, several Stunners to the chest), Morrighan realized that she didn't feel sick anymore. In fact, she hadn't felt sick since that morning. Something… something was different.

She ignored the thought, but the following morning, she was sick again and she knew she had to talk to someone, anyone, because she was running out of time. That afternoon, Sirius would have to choose and she needed to know…

"Remus," she said at breakfast, because he was there to help her with Defense, "I need to talk with you, in private."

He frowned, but he followed her up to the library. As soon as he closed the door behind him, she looked up at him, shaking in fear.

"I think I might be pregnant," she whispered. He blinked.

"That would explain a lot," he said slowly. "Do you want me to get Molly?"

"No!" she cried. "No, I want you to find out from someone how to test me and I want you to find out. We have to know for sure before we tell Sirius, and Sirius needs to know before anyone in the Order but you, all right?"

He looked at her with an unreadable expression for a moment before nodding and saying, "All right, I'll go to Andromeda, and I'll be back as soon as I'm sure I know how to do it right. You stay here. Read a book. I'll be back soon."

"Hurry," she said anxiously. She already felt nauseous, and wasn't sure if it was her… illness? Condition? Nerves?

She sat there looking at but not really reading a book about the uses of animal blood and other bodily fluids in a variety of potions. It was nearly lunch when Remus came back, and Morrighan was a shivering mess.

"All right," he said. "I've… I've got it pretty well figured out. Just… Sorry, you're going to have to lift your shirt."

"I figured as much," Morrighan said with a weak smile, rolling up her shirt to reveal her abdomen.

"So," he said, clearing his throat, "this spell will reveal the gender if you're actually pregnant. If – if it works, that is."

"Right," Morrighan said, nodding.

Remus performed a complicated wand motion, taking a deep breath as he did so, and her stomach began to glow… one, two, three red patches along her abdomen, and he gawked at it awkwardly.

"Well?" she snapped. "What does it mean?"

"It – it means you're pregnant," he muttered. "Triplets. Girls."

"Triplets?"

"Triplets."

"Fuck."

Before they could fully discuss the implications of this, Severus came in.

"I've been looking for you," he said. "There's been an important event, which I'm sure you knew. Meeting in the kitchen right–"

He broke off, looking down at Morrighan's exposed and lit up abdomen, and his mouth curled into a dissatisfied smirk.

"Well, well," he sneered. "I must say, I knew the young were often foolish, but I never thought your taste would sink so low, Capilla."

The fact that he used her surname stung like a slap across the face. But she understood instantly what he thought had occurred, what he thought was going on.

"Remus is not the father," she spat. "And don't speak to me that way, Severus."

He looked taken about at being spoken to thus, but he quickly recovered.

"Ah, so it's the dog then," he muttered. "Truly the wolf would have been a better choice, but I suppose you _are_ young."

Morrighan rolled her eyes and unrolled her shirt.

"As I recall," she snapped, "there's something very important going on. Now we'd better all get down to the kitchen _now_ before Sirius does something royally stupid."

Remus frowned, but the two men followed her down the hall, down the stairs, down to the kitchen where the bulk of the Order was gathered.

"There they are," Mad-Eye said. "Well, Snape has explained that Potter has taken off to the Ministry, thinking he saw Voldemort torturing Sirius. This means he's going to need help, because obviously Sirius is here, and it's all a trap. Now, I need to know who's going with so we can organize this quickly."

"I'm going," Sirius said sharply, and Morrighan's heart nearly burst with fear and sadness at the words.

"No," she said quickly. "You're not going anywhere."

Sirius's face was fierce and insistent as he turned to her and she was sure she'd lost. He was going anyway.

"Morrighan, I'm not just sitting here with my godson in danger! It was me they used to get him there, I'm damn well getting him out of there alive!"

"Sirius, you promise!" she cried. "You swore you wouldn't leave if I asked you not to, and I'm absolutely begging you not to leave!"

His face was wild and it was clear he was hardly listening. She began hyperventilating. It wasn't fair. He said he wouldn't leave. She couldn't raise three children without him. He promised.

"Morrighan, I can't just sit here! It's not fair of you to–"

"I'm pregnant!" she shrieked. "You can't leave me, Sirius."

Severus's smirk twisted into something more like a smile at the dumbstruck look on Sirius's face at her outburst.

Clearly, he hadn't seen this coming, and most of the room was so silent that they almost weren't breathing.

"Pregnant?" he said softly. "Like – like a – like a baby?"

"Three."

"Three?"

"Three."

"Three?"

"Three."

"Three!"

"Three."

"Oh sweet Merlin, you're having triplets?" Tonks cried gleefully, running up and hugging Morrighan's stomach awkwardly. "I'm going to have cousins!"

"You already have a cousin," Morrighan pointed out.

"I'm going to have cousins who aren't raised by Death Eaters!"

"Back away from my babies," Sirius snapped, kneeling on the ground in front of Morrighan and touching her stomach lightly. "Wow," he sighed. "My babies… Our – our babies."

"Congratulations," Molly said sincerely. "And the best of luck. Trust me, twins are hard enough. I'm here for you, whatever you need."

"Thank you, Molly," Morrighan sighed. "That means a lot."

Mad-Eye cleared his throat.

"This is all well and good," he said, obviously completely unfazed by the announcement of Morrighan's pregnancy, "but we still need volunteers."

Sirius hesitated, still staring at Morrighan's stomach.

"I – Harry – Morrighan, he needs me."

"No," Morrighan said firmly. "Harry's got the Order, the best of the DA, and his own fantastic abilities. I'm not saying it won't be a rough fight, but Sirius, if you leave me–" Her voice broke and a tear rolled off her cheek.

"Love, what's wrong?" he whispered. "Tell me what will happen, darling."

"You'll die," she choked out. "If you leave me, Bellatrix will kill you, and I can't do this without you, Sirius. I just can't. I need you. Please don't leave me."

He swallowed hard, taking in the knowledge that he would otherwise not be long for the world, then pressing his hand against her stomach, more firmly than before. His gray eyes locked with her green and he said softly, "Boys or girls?"

"Girls," she muttered, pressing her face into his chest.

"I'm not going, love," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her. "Shh, I'm not going anywhere. We can wait here for Dumbledore. It's all right."

Severus went back to Hogwarts to look after things in the power vacuum, Mad-Eye led off all the Order members who were going to the Ministry (although Tonks seemed a bit hesitant to leave Morrighan with the news of new baby cousins), and Molly and Arthur sat with Sirius and Morrighan, waiting.

"So," Arthur said awkwardly, "how long have you all been…?"

"About six months," Morrighan said with a shrug, curling up against Sirius.

"How far along are you, dear?" Molly said brightly.

Morrighan counted backwards in her head.

"I guess… I guess probably about a month. It's difficult to say."

Molly gave her all sorts of parenting advice, pregnancy advice, and then paused for a moment, as if trying to decide how best to word something, and then said delicately, "Is there… I mean, will you… Ah, is it possible that you two might be married in the near future?"

Sirius's eyes widened.

"I hadn't even thought of it," he said hoarsely. "Wow."

"Erm, I suppose we really can't even think about those sorts of things until Albus makes it so that I legally exist," Morrighan said, noting Sirius's sigh of relief. "We'll figure it out from there."

It wasn't long at all until Albus Dumbledore himself arrived, anxious for news. Morrighan explained everything, including Kreacher's treachery and where in the Ministry he would be able to find the fight.

"We're pregnant," Sirius said quickly. "That's why I'm here and not fighting. Three."

Albus paused for a moment, looking at Sirius as though he wasn't quite sure what to make of him.

"He means triplets," Morrighan sighed.

With a smile, Albus congratulated them, kissed Morrighan softly on the cheek, and rushed off to the battle.

"What now?" Sirius moaned.

"We wait," Morrighan said, fidgeting.

"I hate waiting," Sirius whined.

She rolled her eyes. Honestly, he was such a child. How was she supposed to raise children with a child?

"How about I put the kettle on?" Molly said softly, getting up to make tea.

It was really a good thing she was there, because every ten minutes or so, Morrighan or Sirius would come up with some anxious "new parent" concern and she would calm them down and assure them they were all worked up over nothing.

Late that night, Remus returned, a cut over his left eye, and he quickly said, "Hospital. They're all in the hospital. Everyone's alive, but… Dumbledore's with Harry, then Fudge, then… I've – I've got to go to St. Mungo's. T-Tonks–"

"Go," Morrighan said, relieved they had all survived.

And then they waited.

It was three in the morning when Albus Dumbledore arrived once more at the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, a small smile on his face as he greeted Molly, Arthur, Sirius, and Morrighan.

"You changed something," he said simply to Morrighan. "You don't have to tell me how much you changed, but I know Sirius would have gone into that fight if not for the news of your pregnancy. I suppose Harry will be glad to hear you kept him safe. I have not told him about the pregnancy. I thought you might like to, when he arrives here. Have him stay for at least a month at Privet Drive–"

"Why?" Sirius asked sharply, still not content with Harry's care under his aunt and uncle.

"He has to, Sirius," Morrighan said softly. "Please, just let it go for now."

Sirius stiffened, but he gave a small nod and simmered down.

"On more palatable news," Albus said, "there will be no lasting damage to anyone involved from either the Order or for Hogwarts. Nymphadora is in St. Mungo's, but she will make a full recovery. Ron had a run in with a rather hostile brain, but Madam Pomfrey assures me that he, as well, will make a full recovery, and Ginny has fared incredibly well, with only relatively minor injuries."

Molly and Arthur exhaled joint sighs of relief.

"I have also," he continued, "had a chat with Fudge, and among other things, Sirius, your name has been cleared, and Morrighan, we have created you in the records as a Muggle-born witch, so you are both free to live your lives and do what you will, however I impress upon you the importance of keeping yourselves in Grimmauld Place as a residence, until the war is over."

"Thank you, Albus," Morrighan said sincerely. "So we'll be able to go outside, now?"

"Not without caution, but that goes for all of us, I would think," he replied, a friendly twinkle still in his eye.

Sirius, ever the impulsive, impatient man, leaned over and whispered in Morrighan's ear, "Marry me."

She jumped, both at the unanticipated sensation and the unanticipated words.

"What?" she cried, note entirely certain she'd even heard him correctly.

"Marry me," he said, so that Albus Dumbledore and Molly and Arthur could all hear him. "I'll get down on a knee and pretend I've got a ring in my hands if you want."

"Sirius," she said, breathless, ignoring the three sets of eyes on them, "we've only known each other for a matter of months."

"And I feel I've known you my whole life," he whispered, his thumb brushing her lips affectionately. "And you're carrying three of my children. I never thought I'd get married, but there's nothing I want more."

She really didn't have a very good argument for that one, and although Morrighan had thought she would never get married, either, she couldn't help but think of how wonderful it would be… he would be hers, all hers, and it was really better for their children…

"Yes," she said, before she even realized that the words had tumbled out of her mouth. "Now we have to go see Tonks or she'll kill us both, cousins or no."

Molly hugged the pair of them six times, insisted that she help with wedding plans, and then hugged them both another three times each before Sirius and Morrighan made it to the front door of Grimmauld Place.

She took a deep breath, gave him a smile and said, "Ready?"

He grinned at her, kissed the corner of her mouth, and nodded.

They held each other's hands tightly and flung the door open wide, stepping out into the cool night air, breathing it freely, Sirius for the first time as a free man in years. His smile was so radiant Morrighan felt a surge of happiness in her chest. This was the way it was supposed to be.

"Do you think someone will scream when I step foot in the hospital?" Sirius said, frowning.

Morrighan hadn't thought of that.

"Here," she said, pulling out her wand and carefully transfiguring his hair, nose, and chin so that he looked like a completely different person, except for the eyes. She refused to change those eyes. Then she conjured up a small mirror so he could see himself and he smirked that Sirius Black signature smirk and said, "That's my girl. Beautiful job. Now let's get going, darling."

And they linked arms and walked to the nearest underground station. Morrighan smartly and discretely tapped her wand on the ticket dispensing machine, handed one to Sirius, and kept one for herself, hopping into the underground.

"Haven't done this in years," Sirius whispered. "It's all different now."

They simply stood holding hands, waiting for the stop, which Sirius thought was right (thankfully, it hadn't changed _that_ much) and he led her to St. Mungo's.

"Hello," Morrighan said brightly to the Welcome Witch. "We're here to see Nymphadora Tonks. We've been told she was taken here?"

"Spell damage, fourth floor," the Welcome Witch said dismissively, and Sirius led Morrighan eagerly up to the fourth floor.

"You know," Morrighan said dryly, "we're in a hospital. People are going to think there's something wrong if you're too chipper about it."

"Hush," Sirius said with a smile, leading her down the hall to where Mad-Eye was sitting right outside the door to a ward.

Mad-Eye didn't blink (wink?) an eyelash as Sirius yanked Morrighan inside the ward, although she knew he saw them, and they sat down next to Tonks, who was just starting to wake. Remus was holding her hand, and looked a bit sheepish about it when he realized who had sat down across from him.

"Morrighan? Sirius?"

Sirius frowned.

"How'd you know it was me?" he whined.

"Who else would come with me to the hospital looking like someone they don't know?" Morrighan snorted. "How are you, Tonks?"

Tonks gave her a weak smile and nodded.

"We've got exciting news, cousin," Sirius said with a smirk. "Morrighan and I are getting married."

Tonks's eyes widened and Remus said, "_What?_"

"Albus cleared us," Morrighan said with a laugh. "And Sirius proposed on the spot. In a day or two, Sirius should be free to walk the streets as himself again, and we can get working on the specifics, but still… its news."

Remus shook his head, shocked and amused.

"Let's see, ex-convict, engaged, three children on the way… This is a Sirius Black I never thought I'd see. James was always the one to settle down and – well, I guess I might have expected the ex-convict part, but for a much smaller offense… like vandalism or something. Nothing Azkaban-worthy. Well, congratulations again."

"You'll be my best man, Moony?" Sirius asked solemnly. "I want Harry in it as well, but you're really all I have left from the best days of my life – before I met Morrighan."

"Nice save," Tonks croaked.

The four of them laughed, although Tonks certainly the weakest.

"I'd be honored, Padfoot," Remus said when their laughter died out, and Morrighan could see tears pooling in his eyes.

"Tonks," Morrighan said softly, "I'd be thrilled if you would be my Maid of Honor. I'd like Hermione in the service as well, but I don't really have anyone else, and I think of you as a friend."

Tonks grinned widely and said weakly, "If you hadn't asked, I would have appointed myself."

"Now there's the most important dilemma of all," Sirius said solemnly.

"The date?" Remus asked.

"The ring?" Tonks croaked.

"No," Sirius said, shaking his head, "keeping Molly from turning it into a three-ringed circus!"

**A/N: Hey, everybody, BET YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT ONE COMING! :D I've had this more or less worked out for MONTHS, so this wasn't out of the blue or anything like that. Sirius is ALIVE, which should make all of you very happy, and there's going to be a WEDDING. And his NAME'S CLEARED which means they can leave the house. Aren't you all bursting with excitement?**

**-J**


	18. She's Like the Wind

Three days later, Sirius took Morrighan out shopping, their first excursion as free people, officially. The Minister (Fudge, and then Scrimgeour) gave Sirius a full pardon and welcomed Morrighan into the magical community with open arms (albeit slightly confused). They went to Diagon Alley first, got Sirius some new robes and a new wand (hawthorn and unicorn hair), and then into Muggle London where they got him some Muggle clothes, and went to a jeweler's to look at rings.

Sirius kept pointing out the flashiest, most expensive rings in the store, and the salesman seemed incredibly pleased about this, but Morrighan thought they were all horrible. She knew Sirius could buy her the most expensive ring in London, but that wasn't the point. She had to wear the thing, to look at it every day. It had to be something she actually wanted to look at.

There was a small Celtic ring in a rather modest display toward the far end of the store. No diamonds… not even any jewels, but there was an intricate knot lightly engraved around the band and triquetra etched on the top. The band was silver. It was perfect.

"This one," she said quietly, pointing down at the small band. "This is the one."

The salesman was a bit disappointed at the rather inexpensive and modest decision, but Sirius could tell from the look on her face that it was exactly what she wanted, and he was eager to get it for her.

"We'll get a date later," she insisted. "First things first, we have to figure out what we're going to tell Harry."

"Yes," Sirius said. "But Harry will be happy for us, don't worry about that. No, I was thinking more do you want to get married before you start to show or not, because you know Molly's going to ask."

Morrighan frowned.

"I don't know. How soon does one start showing with triplets?"

Sirius shrugged and said, "I imagine sooner than with twins."

Morrighan sighed, smacking him playfully.

"Why don't we just make it simple and go for next month sometime? I bet Molly would be happy to hold it at the Burrow."

"I'll bet she would," Sirius growled.

"Oh, I've just thought of something!" Morrighan said, eyes wide. "I bet I can convince the Dursleys to let us visit sometimes, so Harry won't be quite so lonely while he's there!"

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"Darling, if you manage to pull that off, you're my hero."

Mad-Eye said that Morrighan and Sirius were allowed to join the group that was going to King's Cross to talk with the Dursleys, so they headed there together, Sirius and Morrighan taking the underground to get there. Morrighan still couldn't Apparate, although Albus had set things up so that she would be getting lessons as soon as she took her O.W.L.s (in two weeks), and then she would take her test just before she took her N.E.W.T.s (in a month). She would have to be especially careful about splinching, because of the babies, but she was assured that it would be safe to Apparate for another three months.

Fred and George had greeted her eagerly, seeing her for the first time since the announcement of her existence, engagement, and pregnancy.

"My, my, we _have_ been busy, haven't we?" Fred teased, kissing her gently on the cheek, earning himself a glare from Sirius. "You both look well."

"And yourselves," Morrighan said brightly. "Oh, look, there they come!"

Out of the brick wall between platforms nine and ten came Harry, Ron and Hermione, walking in step, surprised to see such a large group waiting for them.

"Ron, Ginny!" cried Mrs. Weasley, rushing forward to embrace her children. "Oh, and Harry dear – how are you?"

"I'm all right," Harry said, looking around at them all, hugging Sirius tightly.

"What are _they_ supposed to be?" Ron asked the twins, eyeing their flashy clothes.

"Finest dragon skin, little bro," said Fred, tweaking the zipper on his jacket slightly. "Business is booming and we thought we'd treat ourselves.

"Hello, Harry," said Remus when Sirius had let go of Harry.

"Hi," said Harry. "I didn't expect… what are you all doing here?"

"Well, firstly, Morrighan and I had some news for you," said Sirius, grinning broadly. "Firstly, we're engaged."

Harry's jaw dropped.

"En – engaged? Wow, congratulations. When's the wedding?"

"Soon, I think," Sirius said. "Don't worry, you'll be there for it. But there's more."

"More than engaged?" Harry said slowly.

"I'm pregnant," Morrighan said, grinning broadly.

"With triplets!" Sirius grinned. "I'm going to be a dad three times over!"

Harry's eyes widened.

"Triplets? Wow, that's incredible, congratulations! Boys or girls?"

"Girls," Sirius boasted.

"But we also thought we'd have a chat with your aunt and uncle," Remus said with a slight smile, "before they take you home. They've got to take you for a little while before the wedding, after all."

"I dunno if that's a good idea," said Harry quickly.

"Oh, but I think it is," said Morrighan with a smirk as Mad-Eye limped closer to them. She looked around for what looked like a walrus and a horse. They were surprisingly easy to spot. "I suppose that's them, Harry?"

She pointed at the three Dursleys, who were making no pretense of being pleased to see the group that had welcomed Harry.

"Ah, Harry!" said Arthur, who had just been talking with Mr. and Mrs. Granger. "Well – shall we do it, then?"

"Yeah, I reckon so, Arthur," said Mad-Eye.

The two men lead the way across the station toward the Dursleys, who were rooted to the spot by the onslaught.

"Good afternoon," Arthur said pleasantly to Vernon. "You might remember me, my name's Arthur Weasley."

Vernon Dursley turned a deep shade of purple and glared, but did not speak.

"We haven't met," said Morrighan boldly but politely, addressing herself instead to Petunia, who was far more reasonable than her husband. "My name is Morrighan Capilla. We wanted to have a few words with you about Harry, if you don't mind."

"Yeah," growled Mad-Eye. "About how he's treated when he's at your place."

Vernon bristled slightly and addressed himself to Mad-Eye.

"I am not aware that it is any of your business what goes on in my house–"

"I expect what you're not aware of would fill several books, Dursley," growled Mad-Eye.

"Anyway, that's not the point," said Tonks, causing Petunia to close her eyes when she caught sight of the pink hair. "The point is, if we find out you've been horrible to Harry–"

" – and we will hear about it," said Sirius darkly.

"Yes," said Arthur, "even if you won't let Harry use the fellytone–"

"_Telephone_," whispered Hermione.

"Anyway, Sirius and I will be coming by to check on him from time to time," Morrighan said cheerfully, "so we'll know."

"Yeah, if we get any hint that Potter's been mistreated in any way, you'll have us to answer to," said Mad-Eye.

Vernon swelled.

"Are you threatening me, sir?" he said loudly, causing others around them to turn and look at him.

"Yes, I am," said Mad-Eye, pleased.

"And do I look like the kind of man who can be intimidated?" barked Vernon.

"Well…" said Mad-Eye, pushing back his bowler hat to reveal his revolving magical eye. Vernon leapt backward, horrified, and collided with a luggage trolley. "Yes, I'd have to say you do, Dursley."

"So, Harry," Sirius said, turning to Harry, "Morrighan and I will check on you once a week until you come with us. Tell us if you need anything. If we don't hear from you for three days in a row, we'll send someone along…"

Petunia whimpered.

"'Bye then, Potter," said Mad-Eye, clapping Harry's shoulder.

"Take care, Harry," said Remus softly. "Keep in touch."

"Harry, we'll have you away from there as soon as we can," said Molly, hugging him tightly.

"We'll see you soon, mate," said Ron, shaking Harry's hand.

"Really soon, Harry," said Hermione earnestly. "We promise."

Harry nodded as Morrighan hugged him.

"We'll be together soon, Harry," she whispered in his ear. "I'll see you in a week. Take care of yourself."

And they watched Harry leave, said their goodbyes, and returned to Grimmauld Place.

Life was different that summer, vastly different from what Morrighan would have imagined living in the wizarding world at that time would have been like. For one thing, she and Sirius visited Surrey several times before Albus collected Harry from the Dursleys.

Emmeline Vance and Amelia Bones still died. Morrighan hadn't known enough about their murders to have stopped them if she'd really wanted to. Morrighan took her O.W.L.s and received great scores: Outstandings in Astronomy, Care of Magical Creatures, Herbology, Muggle Studies, and Potions; Exceeds Expectations in Ancient Runes, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Transfiguration; and Acceptable in Arithmancy, Charms, Divination, and History of Magic. She decided not to continue with Charms and Divination, or rather, not take the N.E.W.T. tests in them.

Her N.E.W.T.s went quite well, and she passed all but Muggle studies, which she didn't bother to study. She also managed to get her Apparition license on the first try, which was more than could be said for her driver's license back in California.

Harry was brought to them the night before the wedding, which was to be held three days before his birthday. They had, it seemed, made a stop to visit Horace Slughorn, and Morrighan was thankful that their uprooting of Harry at a different time was not too big of an upset for events.

The wedding was to take place in the garden of the Burrow. Remus and Harry would be groomsmen, Tonks and Hermione would be bridesmaids. Tonks and Morrighan had picked out a simply strapless white lace sheath dress that came down to mid-calf range and only cost about thirty pounds.

"So," Harry said as they sat awake the night before, playing cards and drinking tea, "I guess this makes us sort of like family, doesn't it?"

Morrighan hadn't thought of it that way. Harry saw Sirius as family, and by marrying Sirius…

"Only if you want us to be," she said simply. "If you'd just like to see me as a good friend, that's perfectly fine with me."

Harry smiled and said, "I think I'd like it very much if you were family."

The following morning, despite the fact that they were having a very simple wedding, was chaos. Morrighan supposed it just came with the territory.

She slipped into her dress before anyone else had even woken up, too excited to simply wait, or eat breakfast, or do anything other than put on her dress. As soon as Tonks, Molly, and Hermione were awake, however, she was forced to take off the dress and shower while Molly made her pancakes.

As carefully as she could, Morrighan ate the pancakes as Tonks did her hair, make-up, and helped her back into her dress. Hermione did her nails (which Morrighan had said wasn't necessary, but she was secretly glad Hermione insisted upon).

At exactly one in the afternoon, Remus poked his head in and said, "We're ready in five, ladies."

Morrighan could feel her heart pounding as Molly rushed out to her seat and the ceremony began, Tonks and Hermione trailing after Morrighan toward the front of the small group of guests (essentially, the Order), where Sirius, Remus, and Harry waited, smiling at them.

The actual wedding was a bit of a blur. All Morrighan could recall of it after was Sirius holding her hands in his, his gray eyes fixed on her, a sweet sort of smile on his lips. She could recall him kissing her, slipping the ring on her finger, and the sounds of Molly sobbing happily in the front row. The actual ceremony itself was a blur, but she supposed it didn't matter much, anyway.

They had a bit of a party for the "reception", with Molly's amazing culinary skills as the primary attraction. She had made an amazing array of steaks (after she had learned from Sirius that they were Morrighan's favorite), a salad, and a cake so vast it could have fed the whole of Gryffindor House quite comfortably.

The cake was perfect. Five tiers of white cake, with vanilla buttercream frosting three-quarters of an inch thick between each layer and coating the whole thing, it was a blue cake with a silver star at the top.

"I hope you don't mind," Molly said, "that it's Ravenclaw colors. I thought Sirius might complain, but he seems to not mind so much."

But Morrighan was lost for words.

Ever since she was born, Morrighan's mother made her birthday cakes, and she made beautiful, elaborate cakes, and she made simple but delicious cakes, and a few years (when Morrighan was particularly picky), she made cheesecakes. Morrighan had never really thought about getting married, but she had always, in the back of her mind, expected that if she did, her mother would make the cake and it would be the grandest, most perfect cake ever created.

Standing in the garden of the Burrow, Morrighan was looking at the grandest, most perfect cake ever created.

"What – what made you decide to use blue?" Morrighan whispered.

"I don't really know," Molly said thoughtfully. "It just… it just felt right."

Morrighan felt a tear rolling down her cheek.

Blue was her favorite color.

"Thank you, Molly," she said, smiling a little bit. "It's beautiful. It's absolutely perfect."

Morrighan later noted that it _tasted_ absolutely perfect, as well.

The happiness didn't last forever, though. The morning of Harry's birthday, Tonks came to Morrighan and Sirius (who were staying with the Weasleys while Harry was there before looking for their own place), tears in her eyes.

"Remus," she choked out. "R-remus l-l-le…."

But she couldn't even get a word out other than his name.

"What's wrong with her?" Sirius asked, frowning.

"Remus," Morrighan said softly. "They were together, and he's pushing her away now. He thinks he's being noble, protecting her, but he's just being silly."

Sirius blinked a few times as Morrighan hugged Tonks and rocked her gently. Then he said, "Would you like me to beat him to a bloody pulp until he says he'll make it better?"

Tonks gave a watery laugh and shook her head.

"I hate seeing you cry, Dora," he whispered, patting her blonde hair. "I can't say I really fancy you as a blonde, either, but crying is much worse."

She choked out something that probably would have been a laugh had she not been such a mess.

"Shh, it's all right," Morrighan sighed, rocking her. "He's going to come around, Tonks. Just give it time. I know it hurts, but it gets better."

Tonks looked up at her with big, beseeching gray eyes.

"Promise?" she sniffed.

"Promise," Morrighan said with a nod.

She never thought she would have a chance to say those words, but she meant them wholeheartedly. Sirius watched her as she rocked Tonks, and she knew there would be questions later.

When they'd calmed Tonks down enough, Morrighan and Sirius retired to the room they shared that had once been Charlie's room, and probably would be again, soon enough. Morrighan, attempting to avoid awkward questions, crawled into bed, but she found a pleasant surprise when Sirius rolled in beside her and whispered in her ear, "I'm not going to ask, love, because I know you've been through hell and you've told me quite a lot. I can imagine where such pain might have come from, and I have no desire to make you relive it."

"Thank you," she whispered.

And he held her tightly, smoothing her hair.

"What should we name them?" he whispered. "Knowing you, you'll already have plans. What are your thoughts?"

Morrighan sighed.

"No family names, for either of us. Half of your family names are atrocious, and my family technically doesn't exist, so that would be odd."

"Right. I wasn't going to impose my beautiful daughters with those hideous names, anyway. Only Andromeda's got a name worth giving, and she hated it most of her life, so I'm not making that mistake."

Morrighan smirked at the knowledge that Andromeda did to her daughter what her mother had done to her: given her a name no child wanted.

"Simple names, I think," she sighed. "We'll think of something when I'm further along."

He nodded, cuddling her closer.

"I've been catching up on music that I missed while in Azkaban," he whispered. "Hermione's been helping me."

"Have you?" Morrighan laughed, sitting up a little to look at him.

He nodded again, looking at her cheek as he brushed it with his fingers.

"I found one I really like. It makes me think of you."

"What's that?" she asked, nervous, curious, and surprised.

Sirius cleared his throat and began to sing softly:

"_I look in the mirror and all I see is a young old man with nothing but a dream. Am I fooling myself that she'll stop the pain? Living without her, I'd go insane. Feel her breath on my face, her body close to me. Can't look in her eyes. She's out of my league. Just a fool to believe I have anything she needs. She's like the wind._"

Morrighan didn't know she was crying until Sirius wiped a tear from her cheek gently with his thumb.

"Darling, what's wrong?" he said softly, a little smile on his face. "I know I'm not a very good singer, but I didn't think I was that bad."

He had been terribly off-key, but somehow, that had only made her all the more touched.

The song was from the only film both her parents had owned when they had married, and her mother had said it had been her father's favorite song, particularly while they were dating. It had reminded Simon Capilla of the woman he loved.

Morrighan's father wasn't the romantic type. He didn't go around heaping praise on his children, and was often their toughest critic. When Morrighan went to prom, he wasn't that father who gushed about how beautiful his little girl was when she came down in her dress. In fact, he'd never called her beautiful once in her life. But when that song came on the radio on every rare occasion, he turned it up full blast and sang along off key and Morrighan knew how much he loved her, and her mother, and all of his family, even though he didn't say it very often, or at all. He just didn't have the words.

Hearing Sirius singing it to her, off-key and sweetly, meaning every word, had just been too much and she began to sob into his chest. He cuddled her tightly as she worked out all her tears, calming herself and smiling up at him.

"Thank you, love," she whispered. "That was the sweetest thing you could have possibly done for me."

She kissed his lips softly.

"I love you so, so much," she whispered.

"I love you too," he said, nuzzling her neck with his nose. "I love you more than anything."

**A/N: Song is **_**She's Like the Wind**_**, by Patrick Swayze, from **_**Dirty Dancing**_**, for those of you who didn't know. I cried when I wrote this chapter. As a bit of an apology, I suck at writing weddings, I know. I, like Morrighan, have never been the type to sit around planning a perfect white wedding, and I've only been to a couple. My wedding knowledge is limited. I beg your forgiveness for the terrible wedding scene. I hope the rest of the chapter made up for it!**


	19. Moving Into Black Manor

Harry's O.W.L. results and Morrighan's N.E.W.T. results arrived at the same time. They were both pleased with their scores, and there was a small celebration for Morrighan on becoming a fully qualified witch, although the largest celebration was Harry's birthday, which was a merry sort of occasion. Morrighan didn't think Harry had ever had a happier one, except maybe the day he found out he was a wizard.

That was probably a very, very happy day.

Still, she found him sitting in the garden by himself, smiling after the party was over, and she sat down beside him.

"Wotcher, Harry," she said, finding she rather liked the greeting Tonks had drilled into her head.

"Hey," he said, smiling at her. "How are you feeling?"

She scoffed.

"Harry, I'm not _that_ pregnant yet. I'm glad you'll be at school when I blow up like a planet if this is how you're treating me already."

He just laughed and said, "Thanks for the new cloak. It was brilliant."

"Ah, that was just the gift Sirius and I got you jointly," she said with a sly smile. "I'm giving you your _real_ gift now, but you have to promise this stays between you and me, all right?"

He looked confused and taken aback, but he eagerly agreed.

She had be careful how she worded this, of course, because she didn't want to disrupt things more than she already had.

"I'm allowing you," she said softly, "to ask me any question at all, with the condition that I reserve the right not to answer, should I think that it will drastically change the course of events or potentially do so. Understood?"

Harry smiled slightly and nodded.

He thought for a moment, looking up at the stars, maybe trying to decided what he wanted to know most, maybe trying to decide what she would actually answer.

"Something… something's different," he said softly. "I'm not sure what, but I've heard Lupin and Professor Dumbledore mention that you've already changed something, something big." He looked over at her. "What was it? How was it supposed to go?"

Morrighan smiled a little and said, "I changed Sirius."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, in the original way things went, he was anxious and stir-crazy to get out of Grimmauld Place. He went with you to the train station in the fall and Lucius Malfoy recognized his dog form. He talked to you in the fireplace and almost got caught by Umbridge. And… and he went to the Ministry."

Harry frowned.

"We could have used him," he said. "A lot of people got hurt."

"No," Morrighan said with a sigh. "I kept him away because… because he died there. Bellatrix Lestrange killed him. Maybe it's incredibly selfish of me, Harry," she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes, "but I just couldn't lose him. Whatever else comes, I couldn't bear to lose Sirius Black."

"You love him," Harry said simply, patting her shoulder comfortingly. "That's not selfish at all. If there's one thing Dumbledore's taught me at all in the past few years, it's that love is one of the most unselfish things there is."

He paused for a moment.

"Besides," he continued, "I don't think I would have been okay if he had died, either." He frowned. "I suppose a lot of people die. It's a war, after all."

"Yes," Morrighan conceded. "That's true."

"You can't save everyone," he said, as if he didn't like the fact any more than she did. "If you did that… Well, I don't think things would look at all the same, would they?"

"No, you're right," Morrighan said. "But some people will be saved along the way, by you or me or people with kinder and braver hearts than the average person. That's the way it works, in wars."

They sat in silence, looking up at the stars for a long time, and Molly finally called them inside, insisting that a woman in Morrighan's "condition" ought not to be out in the cold so long. Not that it was particularly cold outside, but that was Molly, of course.

Morrighan cuddled up with Sirius that night and just lay awake, glad she was able to hold him.

When the whole group went to Diagon Alley to get Hogwarts school supplies, Morrighan begged Sirius to let her go to. She wanted to see the joke shop, and despite Sirius's concerns about taking her out in public too much (he was certainly a Death Eater target, and he didn't want his wife and children in danger), he finally gave in to her pouty face and agreed that they could go as long as she went nowhere other than the joke shop and didn't leave his side for a moment.

How could Morrighan refuse such reasonable terms?

They made their way down the eerie street of Diagon Alley, which hardly resembled at all the joyful, cheery place it had once been. It looked more like a ghost town, and there were men and women attempting to sell amulets and other things to keep away the Death Eaters. One was quite vigorously attempting to catch Morrighan's attention, but Sirius pulled out his wand and the man scampered away fearfully. Sirius wrapped an arm around Morrighan then, holding her tightly to him.

Weasley's Wizard Wheezes was the only place on the block where anything that resembled cheer could be seen. While the others were gaping at the grand store, Morrighan rushed inside to find the twins. Fred and George both greeted her happily, hugging her tightly and asking how she'd been.

"I'm qualified now," she said proudly, and just then her husband walked in, frowning.

"I thought we agreed you weren't leaving my sight," Sirius growled.

She grinned at him sheepishly, and he sighed, wrapping his arms around her lovingly.

"From now on, okay? Don't wander off like that; I thought someone had grabbed you. I was frantic."

"He was," Harry said with a smirk. "You should have seen him, it was pathetic. Didn't calm down until Hermione assured him she'd seen you go inside."

Sirius swatted playfully at Harry, but Morrighan kissed Sirius firmly and he quickly forgot about his attack on his godson and returned her kiss vigorously.

"Oi," George said with a laugh, "we've got small children in this shop. Refrain from snogging each other's faces off, will you?"

They began to look around the store, Sirius being enamored with half the things they saw, even the Muggle tricks. They reached the Wonder Witch products, though, and he seemed less impressed. Morrighan went to look at the nearest bottle, and Sirius grabbed her hand.

"You don't need any of that stuff," he said sharply. "You're perfect. Come on, let's ask George if the little puff balls are safe for young children."

Morrighan laughed.

"You mean Pygmy Puffs."

"Whatever."

As it turned out, they were very safe for young children. Sirius bought one.

"We'll get you a ferret when the war's over," he said, "but I've got a feeling this thing could last through the end of the world, and you know how little kids are about pets dying. I don't think I could stand the sight of my little girls crying over a dead pet."

Strangely morbid as his words were, Morrighan couldn't help but feel a little bit touched at the sappy, fatherly consideration.

The trio went temporarily missing, but when they were found again and managed to convince everyone (with Morrighan's help) that they hadn't left the store at all, the party made their way back to the Burrow.

By the time the kids went back to school, Tonks had stopped coming around every other afternoon for tea, or rather, to cry into Morrighan's shoulder and check on her unborn cousins. She was slated to guard Hogwarts for the year. Morrighan swore to write her every week, mostly because she knew how lonely and hurt Tonks would feel all year, and she swore to keep her updated on the babies and the progress of the pregnancy.

Speaking of the pregnancy, by the first of September, she had already begun to show, but such was the curse of triplets. Molly helped Morrighan adjust her clothes so that she didn't have buy new ones with every stage of pregnancy, but would only need them about two or three months from the end. Sirius had started kissing her belly each night before bed and telling his daughters how much he loved them, and how he hoped they looked just like their mother.

At St. Mungo's later that week, they were assured that their children were healthy and developing normally, and that Morrighan was healthy as well. Sirius had insisted that they track Morrighan's health carefully. He didn't want anything to happen to her, he said.

"Why are you so worried about it?" Morrighan said with a laugh. "I'll be fine."

"Things happen sometimes when women have children," he said slowly. "And having twins or triplets can make these things worse, much worse. And I'm not losing you, Morrighan; I'm just not doing it."

When they returned to the Burrow, Molly helped them get settled in their new place: a Manor Sirius had had built over the summer in the countryside near the Burrow. Molly gawked at it: It was large, but still remarkably homey.

"Are you sure we need all of this space, Sirius?" Morrighan sighed, settling in to the sitting room while Sirius made some tea for the three of them.

"Absolutely," Sirius said. "There's going to be five of us soon, and I doubt we'll stop there."

The thought hadn't yet occurred to Morrighan that they would be having more children, but the thought of having more right away was the last thought she wanted to have, what with the three in her belly giving her very little quality rest.

"Sirius," she whined, and he rushed to her side, kneeling beside her, hands on her stomach.

"What is it?" he said quickly. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want more kids right away," she whined. "These ones hurt all the time. I think they've got your big feet."

He sighed with relief.

"Don't scare me like that, darling, I thought something was really wrong."

"Besides," Sirius said with a wink as Molly left to meet Arthur after his day at work, "we can revisit the idea of more children later. We've already proven to be quite a fertile pair and I" – he kissed her eagerly – "absolutely can't keep my hands off you, darling."

"Oh," she moaned. "Sirius, I'm blowing up like a balloon, how can you even think of–"

"I find the fact that my children are growing inside you to be insanely sexy," he murmured, lifting her up out of her chair and taking her to a sofa in the other room, laying her down.

It was strange, having sex with him while pregnant. During the typical day, he would spend ridiculous amounts of time hugging and kissing and fawning over her stomach, but when they had sex he skipped over it completely, refused to touch it as if doing so might somehow corrupt his children. Morrighan couldn't help but wonder what he would do when she grew so large that he could no longer make love to her without in some way touching her stomach. But for the meantime, she simply enjoyed the incredible sensations that her pregnancy hormones enhanced.

And Sirius made sure they "christened" every room in the new manor, and there were quite a lot of rooms, Morrighan found. They barely did anything but eat and have sex for the full first week of September, and they only ate because Sirius was vigilante about the health of his wife and children, almost to the point of driving Morrighan crazy.

"Sirius," she sighed one night, "the babies are not going to die if I only shower once a day."

"Hygiene is important during pregnancy!" he snapped.

So she showered twice a day, just to keep him happy.

The next week, some chilling news came to light, and it was news Morrighan was well aware of: Stan Shunpike had been arrested as a Death Eater. The order was in outrage, and Morrighan herself felt quite upset about the whole thing, but many turned to her.

"How could they do that?" demanded Molly. "He was innocent as could be!"

"What matters to the Ministry at the moment," Morrighan said calmly, addressing the whole of the group, "is that they appear to the public to be achieving results. Even more dangerous than the waste of resources is the kind of message this might potentially send, however. Many people knew Stan, trusted him well enough, thought him harmless, at the very least. The idea that he could actually have been a Death Eater would suggest to anyone who had ever met him that everyone they know could be a Death Eater as well, and not all of them will be as sure of his innocence as they ought to be. This is going to spread exactly the sort of fear and paranoia that Voldemort and his followers are feeding off of, and fear doesn't always make you safer."

There was an appreciative silence and then a slight murmur of agreement.

"Final order of business," Albus said, clearing his throat, waving their attention back to him with his good hand, "Morrighan."

She blinked. What was he talking about? Was there something she had forgotten?

"Your due date," he said with a smile, a twinkle about his blue eyes.

"Oh, yes, I'd quite forgotten," she said honestly. "I'm due for mid-December, but the Healers said it would likely be sooner, as there are three of them all vying for space. They might even come a month early, so be ready any time."

Molly and Tonks tittered excitedly, and Remus and Arthur congratulated Sirius, who was beaming proudly. The meeting broke up, and Sirius and Morrighan returned to the Manor, which Sirius had taken to calling "Black Manor", mostly because Morrighan refused to let him name the house after her, and it was the only other thing they could think of.

"Besides," she pointed out with a grin, "we're the last of the Blacks now, and we can make as many half-blood Black babies as my womb can stand."

Sirius had liked that idea very much, and carried her straight away to the bedroom, where they spent hours making love.

They had reached the second week of October rather peacefully. Sirius doted on Morrighan more and more as she grew bigger and bigger, and they began sleeping on the sofa of the first floor because she was having a hard time climbing the stairs and refused to let Sirius levitate her up to bed. He had made the sofa magically larger so he didn't have to sleep without her, and they cuddled together on their large sofa-bed most hours of most days, dreaming up names for their daughters, which was quite a task because the pair of them could hardly agree on a thing.

One evening, Severus (who actually visited Morrighan sometimes when he knew Sirius was out of the house) came by when Sirius was off visiting Remus and he informed her of Katie Bell's "accident".

"Of course," he said softly, "you already knew about that, didn't you?"

Morrighan sighed deeply nodding her head.

"Severus," she moaned, feeling a sharp kick, the pain nearly knocking her off her already-weak legs, but he caught her.

"What's wrong?" he asked sharply. "Is it time?"

"No," she hissed, gripping his shoulders to steady herself. "No, not for another month at least. Can you help me to a chair?"

He helped her to a seat, and she was surprised to see concern across his typically sneering or unreadable features. She sighed, massaging her massive abdomen gently.

"Thank you, Severus," she sighed. "They kick so forcefully, I just get a bit disoriented sometimes. I don't remember my mother ever complaining about anything like that, but maybe it has something to do with the unbridled energy of the father."

"It's the magical core," he said matter-of-fact, clearly avoiding all talk of Sirius out of respect for Morrighan. "Your mother gave birth to Muggle children, who wouldn't have had the strength of their developing magical core to aid them in the womb."

"Oh," she sighed. "I guess that makes sense. Is there anything I can do to make it hurt less?"

He gave her a tight sort of smile.

"I'm afraid that anything I could give you for the pain might complicate the pregnancy. It's best if you just suffer through it, but taking a hot bath every evening could be helpful."

Morrighan almost laughed at that, knowing her own mother would have said exactly the same thing, and then she tried to picture Severus dressed as her mother, giving her medical advice, but the idea was so absurd that she nearly did laugh as she nodded.

"Sirius should be back soon," she whispered. "I'll take care of myself, don't worry. Will you be coming to my birthday party? Sirius is making it a big event and said I could invite anybody I wanted."

Severus made a sneer that wasn't up to his usual sneer and said, "And you want me there? Are you sure about that?"

"Absolutely," Morrighan said with a laugh. "Be there, okay? Promise?"

He smiled and promised, leaving by the fireplace before Sirius could get home through the front door.

Sirius, of course, knew Severus had been there, but he liked to give her a hard time about it every time, anyway. That day, though, he didn't. In fact, he came in, kissed her cheek, and pulled up a chair beside her, not saying a word about her guest. She frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said sweetly, massaging her stomach and kissing her lips gently. "Everything's perfect."

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," he said with a laugh, tapping her nose gently. "When did you get so suspicious?"

Morrighan frowned, not believing him for a second.

"I will figure it out, you know."

"Whatever you say, darling."


	20. Merry Christmas

By the time the girls were a month old, Harry and Ron had come back for Christmas, Harry to stay with Sirius, Morrighan, and the girls, Ron to stay at the Burrow, but Molly had invited the Blacks and Harry to come over for Christmas, which they had gratefully accepted.

Harry, it turned out, was excellent with kids. Nikki (as they had taken to calling Nicole), Kitty (as Sirius had dubbed Catherine) and Tiffany, although never in danger of being bored between the three of them, were certainly far from danger of boredom with Harry as their ever-willing playmate, not to mention their childlike father.

Morrighan had set up a system, more for Harry's sake, than anything, where the girls each had little dots charmed onto their wrists, color coding them for convenience. She could tell them apart well enough, what with Nikki's small black birthmark on her neck, Kitty's slightly darker eyes, and Tiffany's slightly longer fingers. Sirius, while unable to see the actually differences, seemed to always know instinctively which one was Kitty, and as far as the other two was grateful for the dots. Harry, on the other hand, relied on the dots completely.

"I have no idea how you do it," Harry said one day, awed as Morrighan scolded Kitty for not playing nice with Tiffany. "Telling them apart."

She laughed and said, "I guess I've had a lot of practice, telling apart twins. There was this pair of twins at my school that looked so incredibly different to me, but a lot of people had no idea which was which. And to me, they looked like completely different people."

Harry just shook his head, picking up Kitty and cuddling her.

"I could use you at school, you know." He sighed heavily, poking Kitty's nose gently, causing her to giggle. "Hermione and Ron are fighting and it's driving me crazy."

"I know," Morrighan sighed. "Just know that they're teenagers, and it's going to take a bit of time. I'm guessing there's something else you wanted to ask me about, though?"

Harry frowned and said, "I witnessed something just before break… and I was wondering what you thought about it."

He related the story of his overhearing the conversation between Snape and Draco Malfoy during the Christmas party. Morrighan sat there, struggling with herself, wondering what she could possibly say, what she ought to say.

"Harry, I want you to remember," she said slowly, "that your intuition is often very good, but you're almost never completely right about what you suppose. All I can tell you is that while some of what you're thinking is correct, I trust Snape absolutely, and while I don't think I'll ever convince you that you ought to, I need you to remember that I do, all right?"

"But _why_?" Harry pressed. "What is it that makes you and Dumbledore trust him?"

Morrighan smiled sadly and said, "Harry, you'll find out when it's time. If I told you early, it could mess up a lot of very important things. But you'll know someday, and someday sooner than I would like, certainly."

Harry sighed, but he seemed all right with that answer, for the time being.

Two days later, the six of them made their way to the Burrow for Christmas Eve, where Remus was, waiting to meet the girls for the first time. Sirius and Morrighan passed off the girls to the Weasley children and Remus, giving Harry and Remus the control over the situation, and asked Arthur and Molly if they could speak with them privately.

"We were hoping," Morrighan said softly, "that you would agree to be the girls' godparents."

Molly's eyes filled with tears and she said, "Really? You mean that?"

"Absolutely," Sirius said firmly. "I know we don't see eye to eye on everything, Molly, you and I, but if something were to happen to us, there's no one better that I would want to leave my little princesses with. You've already proven yourselves more than capable of raising wonderful children."

Molly was speechless, sobbing and hugging the pair of them while Arthur smiled, thanked them, and assured the Blacks that they would be honored and pleased.

"Now that that's settled," Sirius said with a bark of laughter, "let's get to the festivities!"

Morrighan watched on as Sirius, Remus, and Arthur clearly engaged in a conversation with Harry that she knew was about Malfoy and Snape. She played with the girls with the twins.

"They're beautiful, Morrighan," Fred said softly in her ear, and she blushed, thanking him. "I swear Tiffany's going to have your smile."

"Fred, that's ridiculous," she laughed. "You have absolutely no way of knowing that."

"Maybe not," he said with a laugh, "but if she does, she'll have the world at her mercy."

Morrighan couldn't help but blush a bit at that, but his attention had turned back to Tiffany and Kitty, who were snuggled up in his lap. She scooped up Kitty and went over to Sirius, who was still talking with Remus and Harry, and they were all frowning. Sirius's face lit up when Morrighan passed Kitty into his arms, but the other faces all seemed a little bit puzzled.

"Do you know anything about a Half-Blood Prince, darling?" Sirius asked, kissing her cheek as he rocked Kitty gently in his arms.

"Yes, of course I do," she sighed, "but I'm not telling any of you anything. Harry, you'll know by the end of the year, I promise. It's someone you know, but not someone you expect."

Harry didn't seem satisfied with this answer, but Sirius, placated entirely but the presence of his daughter in his arms, seemed incredibly satisfied.

"Darling," he whispered, "I think she's falling asleep."

Morrighan looked over to see Kitty curling her head against her father's chest and yawning contentedly, her fingers curling up into little balls around his shirt.

There was a collective sound of appreciation for the adorable quality of the scene and Sirius smiled a little.

"I never thought I'd see the day," Remus said quietly, admiring the scene. "Padfoot, the over-proud, exceedingly tender father. James would have teased you mercilessly."

"No doubt," Sirius said softly, gently caressing Kitty's head. "Just as I teased him. I suppose there's more to tease me about, though."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Remus chuckled. "I mean, you're older now, and thereby expected to be settling down. What's more, you've got daughters. Fathers are supposed to fawn over daughters. And you did manage to find a much younger wife. I think that was to be expected. Either you were going to marry young to a much older rich woman, or you were going to wait and marry a pretty young thing, which you managed to accomplish."

Morrighan snorted.

"Aren't you glad I'm a pretty, penniless young thing and not some rich old hag, darling?"

"I would love you even if you were a rich old hag, beautiful," he whispered, leaning forward to press his lips sweetly to hers, and Ron started gagging on the other end of the room, and Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Morrighan just smirked and feel even deeper into the chaste kiss. Sirius's quick, teasing tongue tried to make an entrance into the kiss, but Morrighan pulled away before he could cause a scene.

Later that night, they went back with Harry and Morrighan went about tucking in the girls for bed. She sat over them, singing the gentlest lullaby she could remember as she charmed the cradles to gently rock. She could feel eyes on her, and as she finished, she turned to watch Sirius watching her with eyes burning with hunger.

He motioned for her to follow him, and so she followed him up to their room. As soon as he closed and locked the door behind them, he pressed her hard against the door and kissed her passionately. She moaned, melting into him, wrapping her arms around his neck as he hoisted her up, allowing her to wrap her legs around his waist. After a moment he began to kiss his way down her neck and she said, "What did I do to deserve this?"

Initially he just growled, carrying her over to the bed and tossing her down on it, crawling to where he was hovering over her, kissing every bit of her skin he could reach while taking off her clothes.

"Something," he hissed against her skin, "about the way you've been all night has been driving me crazy."

How had she been that night? She'd been almost exclusively with the girls. She'd been… mothering. She smirked as he took one of her nipples into his mouth.

"So you want me to sing you lullabies and spank you when you're naughty?"

He shuddered a bit and said, "It's not you as _my_ mother, but… I don't know. You're the mother of my children and somehow, something about that is _incredibly_ sexy." Sirius traced his tongue back up to so that they were eye to eye and he whispered huskily, "I want to drive you wild tonight."

She gasped as he began kneading her breasts, knowing, as always, just the right pressure and rhythm. Her legs wrapped around him again and she said, "What if the girls cry?"

"We'll get a nice house-elf," he groaned, "and one that likes kids. So we can keep having sex."

"I think I know of one," Morrighan moaned, thinking of Winky. "I'll call on Dumbledore tomorrow and arrange it. But what if they cry right now?"

"They won't," Sirius hissed, working himself down her body and lapping up her juices like a dog lapping water. "They understand how important it is for their frustrated father to get laid tonight. They'll be good."

Morrighan choked out a laugh as he began attacking her with his mouth with earnest, but the laugh soon turned to a moan, which turned to her hugging a pillow in front of her face to keep from waking the girls with her cries as she exploded with ecstasy. Sirius smirked as he kissed his way up her body once more, finding her lips at last and she moaned as she tasted herself on his tongue.

He entered her roughly, pounding as vigorously as possible and she was glad that he was still kissing her so that their sounds were swallowed up in each other's mouths. The tension and passion increased and she came twice before he finally exploded inside her, the two of them coming together and her gasping his name as she pulled out of the kiss, throwing her head back, toes curling, their bodies pressed so tightly together she thought there couldn't be any space at all between them in any part. Most of all, Morrighan's tired, sated mind thought how lovely they fit together, like two pieces of a puzzle.

"I love you so much," he murmured. "So, so, so much. I can hardly believe half the time that you're mine."

She sighed when he placed a few sweet kisses on her neck and curled against her while he stayed inside her. He did that sometimes, staying in her all night, or until he came out as they shifted in their sleep.

"Do you think we could have more kids?" he whispered.

She snorted.

"Sirius, we just had three in one go. How many do you want?"

He smiled against her skin and said, "Well, I would say just one more in hopes of keeping you happy, but if I'm being perfectly honest, I'm going to want more as long as you'll let me have more."

Morrighan blinked, sitting up a bit in bed, looking down at her clearly insane husband.

"So we could have twenty kids and you would want more?"

He looked up at her with a smile that was so different from his usual smirk, so hopeful.

"Why do you think I got us such a big house, love? We didn't need all this space for five people. I was hoping I could use it as a point of logic in having more kids."

She couldn't help herself. Morrighan began to giggle uncontrollably. Sirius frowned as she fell back onto the bed once more, laughing.

"What?"

Morrighan took a moment to get her laughter under control and raised a hand to his face.

"I told myself at one point," she whispered, "that I'd keep having children until I had three boys, no matter how many children it took. I'm just as crazy then as I am now, so I suppose that offer still stands. Can you live with that?"

"Absolutely," Sirius said happily, hugging her tightly to him.

The following morning, Morrighan extracted herself from Sirius's arms and made her way to Hogwarts. Albus Dumbledore was in his office, as she had quite expected, but it was clear that he hadn't been expecting her.

"Hello, my dear," he said with a smile. "Is there something on your mind?"

"Actually, Albus," Morrighan said good-naturedly, "I'm here with affirmation that Sirius and I are insane."

He smiled even brighter.

"We want more children," she said, earning a laugh from Albus. "Yes, well, we were talking last night about it, and the subject of getting a house-elf came up. We'd like another house-elf, someone besides Kreacher, who is more than content to stay at Grimmauld Place. We'd like an elf that is used to caring for large houses and loves children. I was wondering if Winky is still having troubles adjusting to life as a Hogwarts elf."

Albus smiled.

"Indeed she is. I think she would be an excellent choice. Would you like me to call her and discuss the matter?"

"Yes, that should be fine," Morrighan said pleasantly. She didn't think Sirius would mind her dealing with this matter without him, but she did hope to settle it quickly so she could be back before the girls woke up, not wanting to leave all of them with Harry and Sirius to deal with first thing in the morning.

"Winky," Dumbledore called in a clear voice, and the elf appeared between them, hiccoughing slightly, but more or less steady on her feet, although clearly miserable.

"Winky, my dear," Dumbledore said kindly, "I know that your employment here at Hogwarts has not been to your satisfaction. A family has expressed interest in acquiring you. Would you prefer working for a family to staying here?"

"A – a family, sir?" she squeaked. "Winky would like that very much, sir."

"Excellent," he said with a kind smile. "This is Mrs. Morrighan Black. She and her husband, Sirius, will be your new family, and they have three small daughters. They are several months old now, yes?"

Morrighan nodded.

"Would you like to come home with me now," Morrighan asked, "or would you like to say goodbye to Dobby first?"

Winky asked to have time to say her farewells to Dobby, but also asked if he would be allowed to visit, and Morrighan said he was welcome in Black Manor any time he wanted. She thanked Dumbledore, told Winky how to get to Black Manor, and then went back there herself to find Sirius beginning on breakfast.

"Morning, love," he said, kissing her temple gently. "You worried me, I woke up and you weren't there and then Harry said he hadn't seen you. He's down at the Burrow; he should be back after Molly stuffs him full of lunch. Where did you go?"

"I've been getting us a house-elf," Morrighan said, sitting down across from Sirius. "I think you'll like her, she's a sweet thing."

"Oh," Sirius said, surprised. "That sounds lovely. What's her name?"

"Winky," Morrighan said, taking the piece of toast he handed her. "She used to belong to the Crouch family but, well, you know how that turned out. She was thrilled to be working for a family again, and I think having children around was an added bonus. She's been miserable at Hogwarts, just ask Harry."

"Oh, Harry knows her?" Sirius said, sitting down across from her and setting a cup of tea in front of each of them.

"Yes," she said. "Winky's friends with Dobby, the elf he freed from the Malfoys. She's saying goodbye to Dobby now, actually."

Not even a full minute later, Winky appeared in the kitchen, sobered up and in a house-elf sheet that was clean and crisp and she looked so pleased to be back serving a family that Morrighan knew instantly that she had done the right thing.

"Hello," Sirius said kindly. "You must be Winky. I'm Sirius."

"Winky is knowing who Master is, sir," she squeaked. "Master Dumbledore is telling Winky who is new Master and Mistress, sir."

It was then that one of the girls began to cry, and when one cried, it wasn't long before they all cried. Morrighan, Sirius, and Winky went up to the girls' room, each taking a child in their arms and beginning to attempt to calm them.

"You have Nikki, Winky," Morrighan said gently. "I have Tiffany. And Sirius is holding Kitty." She rolled her eyes a little bit. "Sirius is _always_ holding Kitty."

"That's not true!" Sirius said indignantly as Kitty began to curl her fingers around his shirt again. "I'm fair and treat my girls equally."

"Right," Morrighan said sarcastically. "And when was the last time you causally picked up Tiffany?"

He frowned slightly.

"All right, so maybe I've got a tiny bias," he admitted, and they all laughed.

Winky went to work right away, caring for the children, making food, cleaning the house, and by the time Harry came back from his morning at the Burrow, Black Manor was almost a completely different place.

"Did you clean up?" he asked, confused.

"Well, it's certainly cleaner," Morrighan said with a chuckle, handing him Kitty. "Here, hold her now while her father's busy or you'll probably not get another chance before you go back to school. Anyway, we've got a new house-elf."

"What, did Kreacher die?" Harry joked.

"No, he's still at Grimmauld place," Morrighan said. "We actually got Winky from Hogwarts. She seems much happier here, and Dobby will probably visit from time to time. Sirius wants more kids, and I couldn't stand the thought of her wasting away with misery at Hogwarts. What do you think?"

"I think," Harry said frankly, "that your falling into this world is the best thing that could have happened for all of us."


	21. This Isn't a Chapter, It's A Treat!

**A/N: THIS IS NOT A CHAPTER! Not really. I am rewarding my lovely readers with some tidbits I JUST FOUND in one of my notebooks I was searching through for notes on another story. I wondered where these had gotten to… ANYWAY this is some of the scenes I had originally written for this story but either didn't make it in or were modified for the sake of my not being able to find them but keeping the story moving. The official version, of course, is what you have read up to this point. This is just for kicks and giggles. I'd love to know what you all think, what you like better or worse, etc. Please review if you decide to take the time to read this! LOVE YOU ALL!**

**-J**

"Please, Sirius, don't go to with them to the station tomorrow."

He frowned.

"Did I go in your book, Morrighan?"

"Yes, but–"

"Then I'm going!"

She knew there were tears now making their way down her face, but she didn't care. She had to make Sirius see reason.

"Lucius Malfoy recognized you, though," she whispered as he made to leave the room. He turned and looked at her, surprise on his face when he saw her wiping away tears. "If I can't make sure you stay here when I ask you to, you won't survive another year and I can't deal with that, Sirius, it was hard enough reading it."

His previously surprised expression softened into compassion as he sat down beside her on the couch. Wrapping his arms around her and petting her gently he whispered, "I died?"

For a moment, Morrighan could do nothing but sob into his strong chest as he smoothed her hair and murmured soothing sounds into her ear. He would have made a great father, she thought, kissing away skinned knees and hugging away nightmares.

"Yes," she finally hissed. "And it hurt Harry so much to see you die… and Remus… and… a part of me died with you," she admitted, looking up into his stormy gray eyes, imagining them laughing as he fell through the veil. She shook violently as he hugged her tighter, rocking her gently and nuzzling her face with his.

"I promise you," he whispered after a moment, "if you ask me to stay, I'm not going anywhere, all right?"

"Really?" she sighed, not realizing that he was now nuzzling her neck.

"You have my word. But you have to promise me something," he breathed.

"Anything," she hissed without thinking, now becoming painfully aware of his hot breath on her neck.

"Don't you dare leave me," he said in a low growl, giving her little body a tight squeeze.

Words failed her, but she would never have dreamed of anything of the sort, especially with Sirius's body encasing her in its warmth as they fell asleep on the couch wrapped up in each other.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"Sirius?" she whispered, suddenly aware of how close his face was to hers. He said nothing, pressing her body back into the wall. Her heart was racing. Her head was spinning. Sirius Black had her pinned to a wall…. His lips were so close….

"Sirius?" said a snide voice from somewhere on the wall behind his back. "Dumbledore has a message."

Phineas Nigellus. What day was it? Morrighan thought it might be December, but it was so hard to think with Sirius's firewhiskey-laced breath on her neck. December… Dumbledore… Harry… Mr. Weasley…

Morrighan's fingers clenched tightly, pressing her nails into Sirius's arms. He didn't seem to notice.

"Bloody fucking Dumbledore," he muttered. "What the hell does he want? Tell him I'm teaching!"

The snide portrait smirked.

"I will not tell him such an outrageous lie on your behalf. Arthur Weasley has been attacked. Harry Potter and the Weasley brats are being sent here by Portkey. Do not let them leave."

And then he was gone. Phineas Nigellus's words didn't seem to sink in to Sirius at first, who turned his cloudy gray eyes back to Morrighan. However, the fear and urgency in her face must have registered, because a moment later he swore and ran into the kitchen to freshen up.

Harry was coming.

Morrighan was left standing alone in the drawing room, back still against the wall, the memory of Sirius's body pressed on hers still fresh in her sleepy mind.

But Harry was coming, and Morrighan was an afterthought once more.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"They leave again," he whispered, "in the morning. And we're alone again."

Morrighan had expected him to be sad about this, but it felt more as if he were making a statement than anything else. They leave again in the morning. Fact. The sun will rise in the east tomorrow. Fact.

"You said people wrote stories about the characters, about us, that weren't part of the book."

"Yes," she said with a smile. "Mostly, I read the romantic pairings."

"Who did I get paired with?" he asked with a little smirk.

"Oh, lots of people," she laughed. "A lot of girls made up people like themselves to pair you with. I've seen you paired with Lily, James, Remus, Bellatrix…"

His face went from confused to disgusted so rapidly that it took all of Morrighan's power not to laugh.

"Lily and I would never have happened," he said, "because she was James's girl and because she's just not my type, and I'm _not_ gay. I'm _not_. And Bellatrix? What were they smoking?"

Morrighan laughed.

"Well, people thought that you hated each other entirely too much to not have some sort of unexplained backstory. To be honest," she said with a blush creeping into her cheeks, "those stories are almost always incredibly sexy."

Something flashed in his eyes, but he did nothing but move almost imperceptibly closer.

"I didn't write any of those," she said softly. "I liked to create imaginary girls for you."

"How very nice of you," he said gruffly. "What sort of stories did you write about me, love?"

Morrighan told him about the stories she had written and he gave his input. They ended up laughing quite a lot and discussing his past.

"It's hard to believe they think I slept around," he said at one point. "I didn't date. I think I could count the girls I've slept with on one hand. I was busy with my friends."

And he wondered why some people thought he was gay…

At another point, they got into an uncomfortable discussion about his childhood and the day he ran away.

"I wish it had been as heroic and brave as you make it out to be," he sighed. "My parents did hit me, but I was never really beaten because I was the heir. We argued, but there were no knock-down drag-out fights. I just got fed up one night as they talked about blood purity crap. Regulus made a crack about werewolves and one thing led to another and soon it was a full blown werewolf-bashing orgy and I couldn't deal with it anymore. Something in me snapped. The next day, I packed up my things before anyone woke up and I left without a note. I don't think any of them saw it coming. I expect they were rather shocked to find me gone."

"Yes," said Morrighan with a small smile, "I imagine they were."

There were several minutes of silence as they watched the fire die down to embers. Feeling a little awkward with the stillness, Morrighan climbed to her feet and moved to the window, looking out into the night.

"Can you see my star?" said Sirius quietly, the proud smirk obvious in his voice as Morrighan glanced up.

"I'm not sure," she said. "I know what constellation you're in, but I don't see it."

Morrighan heard him get off the couch to join her at the window, but instead of standing beside her he came up behind her, boxing her in by placing his hands on the sill on either side of her, his warm body pressed against her small frame as he looked up at the sky.

"Hmm," he hummed in her ear, "you're quite right. I suppose there are more beautiful things to look at, anyway."

"Like what?" she said with a laugh, turning to face him, finding his gray eyes watching her with a dark sort of intensity. It was impossible in this position not to notice that he was purposefully pressing his body into hers, that he was breathing his sweet breath deeply and deliberately into her face.

"I can hardly believe you're so young," he sighed, brushing a strand of hair out of her face, his rough fingers lingering on her cheek. "What are we, fifteen years apart?"

"Something like that," she managed to say, breathlessly, knowing he could tell that she was not unaffected by his closeness and deliberately intimate actions. He really shouldn't tease her like that, she thought to herself, because he had to realize what he was doing to her.

"But that's not really anything," he whispered, leaning in even closer, "seeing that I spent twelve years of my life on hold. So it's really like we're three years apart."

She made a noise of agreement, her ability to use words failing her rapidly as she watched his face inch closer, her eyes focused on his slightly parted lips. Whatever he said next wasn't registered by her mind, which was already dizzy with his incredibly intoxicating scent. Before she realized what probably ought to have seemed obvious and inevitable, his lips were on hers, both gentle and demanding, wrapping his arms around her once he realized she wouldn't push him away.

Morrighan had kissed a lot of boys. At one point in her life, she had been a romantic. When she had lost her romantic sentiments, she had told her mother that she had never enjoyed kissing, touching, or sex anyway, so it didn't matter. Her mother had said, "You must not have been with the right person yet." Morrighan had laughed at her mother, not believing a word.

She believed it now.

Any description of how Sirius's kiss, how the way he held her body against his, made her feel would be insufficient. All that can be said is that if one has felt it before, one knows instantly what she felt, and that if one hasn't, that it is wished upon one to feel it in the future.

The moan that came from her lips and fell into his seemed to have come from somewhere outside of her; it seemed so incredibly foreign to her. On the other hand, the moan that passed from his lips to hers felt so incredibly natural that it seemed as though she had almost anticipated it.

The sound of something falling to the floor somewhere above them caused them to break apart skittishly, but Morrighan noted his heavy breathing, his dark eyes, his kiss-swollen lips. Even if they had broken apart seconds sooner, anyone walking in would know what had just occurred between the pair of them. Despite her fear of being caught or even pushed away, Morrighan wanted so badly to press her lips to his once more, just for a little taste.

"I'd like to do that again sometime," he whispered, "if you don't mind."

Morrighan was sure that if she said a word, her voice would end up begging for his lips, so she simply nodded as he took another step toward her.

"It's late, though," he breathed, putting one arm around her waist, pulling her body against his. Her brain swam with confusion as his words and his actions sent different messages. His lips pressed gently against hers, lingering for far too short of a time before pressing them to her forehead.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

Then he pulled her back to the divan, conjuring a blanket over them as he positioned her body above his. Morrighan sighed in spite of herself, cuddling into his chest, breathing in his scent and soaking in his warmth. Sirius's arms held her strongly against him, his hands gently petting her.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

This was the same as all of those other times they had kissed, and yet different. Their kisses were more desperate, their hands more needy, their sighs more enraptured, their moans more sinful. Morrighan had never felt whatever this was before, but it felt as though she wanted to, no, needed to be closer, deeper, for their bodies and souls to become one. Something about the way he pressed himself against her made her think he must have felt the same.

Hazily, Morrighan was aware of Sirius hovering over her, which meant she was lying down. She thought they might be on his bed, but it hardly mattered. His fingers were tracing their way up her legs beneath her dress, all of her hungry moans lost in the cavern of his mouth, which hadn't left hers since the kiss began.

Suddenly, his lips began moving away from hers and she whimpered in pitiful protest, attempting to pull his face back down to hers, but he grimaced slightly, resisting.

"If you want me to stop," he whispered huskily, "you're going to have to say something now, or I'm not sure I'll be able to."

Without a thought to the implications of his words, Morrighan moaned, "Don't stop," biting her lip and whimpering again."

"Oh, fuck," he hissed, hungrily reclaiming her lips in his, ripping his shirt off so he didn't have to part the kiss once more.

The sight of him shirtless was nothing new. After all, she had seen him wandering the house in nothing more than a towel, but somehow, with their bodies so close, it made her heart race. For a while everything was a blur. Her dress came off, his pants came off, and then he took his sweet time kissing and licking every newly exposed patch of skin on her body. When she was squirming with need beneath him, he quickly disposed of their remaining clothing, the final barriers between their desperate flesh.

He paused when they reached this point, drinking her in hungrily with his eyes. It wasn't the first time she had been in this position with a boy, but it was the first time she felt so exposed. Her whole body was flushed and already dripping with sweat.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"Sirius," she said quietly, attempting to stay calm, "I need to see someone."

He frowned.

"Who, love?"

She thought for a moment. Molly? No, she would judge. Tonks? Not bloody likely, she couldn't keep her mouth shut…

"Remus," she said firmly. "I need to speak with Remus, and I need to speak to him alone. It's urgent."

Sirius was clearly confused and concerned, but he rushed off to get Remus. Her friend arrived moments later, alone. Sirius apparently went somewhere else, bless him.

"Sirius said it was urgent," Remus said, panting. "What's wrong?"

"Well," she said softly, "I've been rather moody lately, and I've started vomiting–"

"You're ill?" he said, frowning. "Why–?"

"No," she muttered, blushing. "I think I might be pregnant.

Remus stared at her dumbly for a moment, but then comprehension dawned on his face and his mouth formed a comical little 'o'.

"Do you know a diagnostic spell?"

He shook his head and said, "Wait here. I'll ask Sirius's cousin. I'll be right back."

Remus rushed out of the room, leaving Morrighan to ponder with amusement how close he and Tonks must already be if he felt comfortable going to her mother about this. Not five minutes later, he was back, looking flushed and flustered.

"Apparently," he said dryly, "Sirius has no concept of entertaining himself. You don't want to know. Anyway, I've got a spell." He knelt beside her. "May I?"

She nodded, and Remus folded up her shirt to reveal her stomach, which he touched gently with his wand. There was a series of bright sparks and flashes and Remus watched intently, memorizing them, his eyes wide with shock when they finally stopped.

"Well?" she whispered.

"Erm," he muttered. "Well, you definitely _are_ pregnant."

"Okay…"

"With triplets."

"I'm sorry, _what_?"

"Triplets. Three children. Girls, to be exact."

"Triplets. Three. Oh, Merlin, what am I going to tell Sirius? I need a drink."

"No!" Remus hissed. "No alcohol! Anyway, you're about a month along. I expect you'll be showing in the next two or so months, what with three children and all."

"Three?" she squeaked pathetically.

"Three," he said with a sympathetic and firm nod. There was no way around it. Morrighan had three little people growing inside her.

As if on cue to make her life even more stressful, Severus Snape appeared. He looked at them, Remus still kneeling over her bared stomach, and sneered.

"Morrighan, cover yourself. Where's Black?"

"Downstairs, why?" said Morrighan, blushing and covering her stomach.

"You're sure? When did you last see him?"

"About five minutes ago," said Remus, getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

Severus looked almost relieved and Morrighan realized what must be occurring.

"We should tell him, Morrighan," said Remus softly.

"You look like you're ready to be sick," said Severus with a smirk.

She nodded and blurted out without thinking, "Pregnant. Three."

Both men blinked.

"Three?" said Severus, confused.

"Triplets," offered Remus weakly.

There was an awkward pause and a cold smile played at Severus's lips as he said, "You work quickly, Morrighan. You've not been here a year and you're already growing a litter of werewolf cubs?"

"They're not mine!" cried Remus, blushing at the thought. "They're Sirius's!"

All hint of a smile fell from Severus's lips.

"Black? You're pregnant with Black's children?"

"Severus, this isn't why you're here," groaned Morrighan helplessly. "Can we mobilize the Order and talk about my romantic life when nobody's life is in immediate danger?"

"Whose life is in immediate danger?" demanded Remus.

"Whose life is _always_ in immediate danger?" Morrighan sighed, aggravated. "We're wasting time, come on!"

They rushed downstairs and Remus went to gather Order members and Severus informed Moody of the situation. Morrighan was just wondering where Sirius had gotten to when he burst into the kitchen, panting.

"Remus just told me everything. How many people are going and when do we leave"

"You're not leaving," said Severus with a smirk. "You're under house arrest, Black, remember?"

"That's my godson out there, Snivellus, and if you think I'm going to sit here–"

"Sirius, you promised!" cried Morrighan, unaware that other Order members were filing in the door behind her. "You said you wouldn't go–"

"Harry needs me–"

"Harry will be fine, I need you!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm pregnant, Sirius!"

A pin drop could have been heard in that room as Sirius gaped at her.

"Pregnant?"

"Pregnant."

"A baby? I'm going to be a father? We're going to have a baby?"

"Three."

"Three…"

"Three."

"Three?"

"Three."

"Three! Three babies? Triplets?"

"Yes. Three."

"Fuck."

"Touching as this is," growled Moody as Molly rushed to hug Morrighan, "we've got a mission here."

"I'm coming," Sirius said stubbornly.

"Please," Morrighan said, tears forming in her eyes, "if you go you die and you can't leave me. Please, Sirius, you promised. Don't go!"

He appeared to be undergoing a fierce internal battle, stay or go, but when Morrighan absently stroked her stomach his eyes followed her hand and he rushed to hold her, pushing Molly out of the way and shielding the carrier of his children from the room as if someone had just threatened her. His children…

"I'm not going anywhere," he whispered throatily. "I'm not going anywhere, love."

When Moody filed out the Order and Snape returned to Hogwarts, Sirius relaxed his hold on Morrighan and sat, pulling her onto his lap beside the Weasleys. He nuzzled her neck with his nose, caressing her belly over and over again.

"How long have you known?" he muttered, hugging her tightly.

"I just found out," she admitted. "Remus did the test for me just now."

"Boys or girls?" asked Molly eagerly from across the table.

"All girls," she sighed. "Which is odd because Sirius didn't have any sisters, and neither did my father. Boys are far more common in my family."

"Three girls," sighed Sirius. "Where the hell are we going to put them? We can't raise kids here. Trust me, darling, this is not a good place to raise children. It has bad child-rearing karma."

They began to discuss the complications this would cause, as neither Morrighan nor Sirius was allowed to leave headquarters. And legally, Morrighan, as far as the Wizarding world was concerned, Morrighan didn't even exist.

**A/N: So there you have it. I'm anxious to see what you guys make of these originally written scenes now that I've found them… AND now I have to go to work, so I'll work on the next chapter, might be up tomorrow or Sunday, probably sometime next week, though. Cheers!**

**-J**


	22. Surprises: Good News, Bad News

By the time Harry left for Hogwarts again, the girls had gotten so big that Sirius could no longer carry them all at once, as he would sometimes do in an effort to prove he was a perfect father and deserved more children.

Sirius had insisted that since they had Winky, they would be able to have sex every night, which they did, and it served two purposes: allowing Sirius to have as much crazy, passionate sex as the pair could handle and attempting to get Morrighan pregnant once more. He was thrilled that Morrighan had no objections to either purpose.

Morrighan found that January went by with little comment, although she grew increasingly more irritable with Sirius and the girls as the month went on, and Sirius told Arthur over tea one night that he was worried something was wrong, and Arthur told Molly and, well, long story short, Morrighan was pregnant again.

With twins.

Twin girls, to be precise, due early September.

Morrighan did the math and realized that by the time she gave birth again, Dumbledore would be dead, Snape would be thought a traitor, Remus and Tonks would be married, Bill and Fleur would be married (and they were already driving Molly crazy), and Harry, Ron, and Hermione would be searching for Horcruxes.

And Harry didn't even know what Horcruxes were yet.

Sirius was running around the house with the girls strapped to him, whooping and cheering excitedly to be a father five times over in such a short span of time. Morrighan, meanwhile, was sitting with Molly, trying to decide how to best write the letters she knew she needed to write.

"I'll need to write Harry, of course," she sighed. "And Hermione and Ginny. I'll send a note to Tonks that I want to see her on her day off. But I can't risk sending a note to Remus where he's at. The news will have to wait until he's back…"

She trailed off. Morrighan almost say when he would be back, but not wanting to give anything away she stopped herself and began pulling out parchment, ink, and a quill.

"Isn't this exciting?" Molly said happily. "This has been such a happy school year so far, much better than the last one, even with the war on. Now if Bill would just realize that Fleur is wrong for him and Dumbledore would defeat You-Know-Who everything would really be perfect. Oh, and Remus and Tonks, of course."

Morrighan smiled a little. Remus and Tonks. That was one thing she knew would happen. But the rest was not going to happen and so the smile slipped off her face, although Morrighan quickly plastered it back on knowing that Molly would be anxious if she didn't see Morrighan smiling at such an important and happy time.

"Good things come to those who wait," she said in a sing-song voice about nothing in particular, knowing that Molly would interpret as she would, but really meaning it about Tonks.

She drafted basic letters to each intended target, paying particular attention to Harry's, as he was the one who would be most directly affected by the presence of two more babies in the manor. Once she'd sent off the letters, Morrighan was subjected to Sirius once more worshiping her abdomen, running his hands under her shirt across the skin, in awe.

"Just think," he said to the girls, who were still strapped all over him, "you all were in there not too long ago, and now your new sisters are inside your mummy. Two more girls… we need names, love. I don't think we should leave it to the last second this time."

Morrighan yawned.

"Tonks will be here any minute," she sighed. "I said to come and see me when she had a day off and that I had exciting news."

"Does she have a day off?" Sirius asked, confused.

"I don't know," Morrighan said, kissing him gently, "but you know Tonks. She's been so down lately she'll jump at the prospect of exciting news, thinking it has to do with the girls, or maybe Remus. She'll be here any minute."

"Well, maybe she'll have name ideas," Sirius said, kissing Morrighan's stomach through her shirt.

Not even thirty seconds later, Tonks was banging on the door, and Sirius let her in with a smirk. She rushed in, excitement all over her features.

"All right, tell me everything, you!" she spotted the babies strapped to Sirius and said, "Oh, hello!"

She eagerly took Tiffany into her arms and kissed the top of Tiffany's head.

"I can't believe how big they've gotten already. Now, what are you telling me, Morrighan?"

Morrighan smiled and said, "We're pregnant again."

Tonks's jaw dropped.

"You're joking."

"Nope."

"Again?"

"Yep."

"Boy or girl?"

"Girls."

"Merlin, how many?"

"Two."

"Wow," Tonks said slowly. "You must have, like, the world's most fertile womb or something."

Sirius frowned.

"What makes you think it's her womb that's the world's most fertile? Why can't it be my–"

"Because I'd rather think about her womb," Tonks snapped before turning to Morrighan's abdomen and cooing at it. "Aunt Tonks is going to be your favorite person in the world," she said. "That's right, and you're going to pick her over Daddy every time!"

Sirius growled.

"I want her out of the house, love," he hissed. "She's poisoning the minds of our unborn young against me."

"Behave, both of you," Morrighan teased, "or you're both out of the house. You need to learn to be nice to each other. You're family."

She pretended not to notice Tonks and Sirius sticking their tongues out at each other, but they shook hands as if in contrition.

"Very good," Morrighan said happily. "How are things at Hogwarts, Tonks?"

"The same as always," she sighed. "I don't know why I'm even patrolling. Nothing has happened since the Bell girl got cursed."

"Well, it was good people were on alert for that one," Morrighan said reasonably. "Trust me, it's not a bad thing for you to be patrolling."

Throughout the days (and weeks, in Ron's case) Morrighan and Sirius continued to receive notes of congratulations, even an encrypted one from Remus, who had probably heard when reporting to Albus. Tonks dropped by once a week to check on Morrighan's stomach (checking for kicks, that is) and to see if they'd gotten any more news from Remus, which of course, they hadn't.

On the first of March, Morrighan sat straight up in bed and said, "We should go to Hogwarts today."

Sirius moaned and frowned.

"Why?"

"It's Ron's birthday."

"So?"

"So it's a nice thing to do."

"We didn't go on Harry's birthday."

"Harry's birthday's in the summer, dear."

"Well, we didn't go on Hermione's birthday."

Morrighan frowned.

"You're right," she said thoughtfully. "We didn't. We'll remedy that next year," she lied. "Come on, get dressed, we're going to Hogwarts."

Sirius groaned, hugging Morrighan's naked body tighter to him.

"Did we even get him a gift, love?"

She snorted.

"Just because you're insensitive and forgetful doesn't mean we all are, Sirius. I did get him a gift, thank you very much, now get your lazy ass out of this bed right now and get dressed!"

He groaned his complaints and tried to distract her with kisses, which would have worked had Morrighan not been so single-minded.

"Up," she snapped. "Come on, get up."

When Sirius was finally up and dressed they went down to get breakfast, which Winky was already fast at work making.

"Good morning, Winky," Morrighan said brightly. "We're going to Hogwarts today. We'll be leaving directly after breakfast, I think."

Sirius muttered something under his breath, and although Morrighan couldn't be sure it sounded like he was swearing with frustration at her demand that they go. Morrighan ignored him, determined.

As soon as they finished with breakfast, Morrighan dragged Sirius out the door and quickly Side-Along Apparated him to a spot near the Shrieking Shack and they walked to the Hogwarts Gates, onto the grounds, and Morrighan clasped Sirius's hand tightly, both afraid of what Ron would look like lying in the hospital bed and excited to be seeing Hogwarts for the first time.

"Oh, that's right," Sirius said with his first real smile of the day, "you've never been here before, have you? Well, this should be fun, anyway."

They walked up the stone steps, through the grand front doors, and into the stone entrance hall. She nearly gasped at the incredibly overwhelming hall, and she hadn't even seen the Great Hall yet. But that would wait. Trying to remember in her mind where the hospital wing ought to be, she clutched Sirius's hand again and raced up the marble stairs, Morrighan quickening her pace as they went, eager to make her way up to the hospital wing.

"Where are you going?" Sirius said at one point. "This isn't the way to Gryffindor Tower or Dumbledore's office."

"I know," she said, continuing to pull him forward.

He stopped short when they reached the floor they were on. He frowned at her and when she turned to look at him she realized he'd figured it out.

"The hospital wing," he said. "You're taking me to the hospital wing. Is Harry all right?"

"Harry's fine," Morrighan said. "Just come on, you'll see when we get there."

"No," Sirius said, speaking harshly to her for the first time she could remember. "No, you're going to tell me right now or I will not go a step further."

Morrighan frowned, turning to look at him and wondering if it would hurt anything for him to know those few seconds sooner. She decided there wasn't much harm she could do by telling him.

"All right," she sighed, moving in close to him and speaking softly so that if any student chanced to walk by it would look like one of the most famous couples in Wizarding Britain (for who wouldn't be interested in the love life of an attractive, rich, redeemed ex-con?) were having a tender moment in the hall, not discussing events which had occurred while they were sleeping. "Before Christmas, there was a girl who tried to sneak Harry a love potion."

"What?" Sirius cried, but Morrighan shushed him and he fell silent.

"Harry disregarded the sweets she drugged more out of business and lack of interest than anything and forgot all about them. This morning, Ron started eating them, not knowing what they were, thinking they were a birthday present as they had fallen among his other gifts and was, well, affected."

"So he took love potion that's probably way past date?" Sirius said sympathetically. "Yikes."

Morrighan smirked.

"You sound like someone with experience."

"Well," he said, "there was a pretty crazy bird back in my school days who tried drugging me several times, and once she actually saved the potion until it was three months past date on purpose. James had to physically knock me out and take me to Lily and beg because she was the only person he trusted with the knowledge of potions to sober me up." He shuddered. "I've not eaten those sherbet balls since…"

"Wow," Morrighan said, not sure whether to be amused or horrified by the story. "Anyway, Harry took him to Slughorn, who managed to make an antidote, and then they were about to toast Ron's health and Ron drank the wine early and started convulsing." Sirius's eyes widened. "Someone had poisoned the wine."

"Blimey, not Ron's best birthday, is it?" he said sympathetically. "Well, I suppose the real question is, who was trying to murder Slughorn and how did they sneak in the poison to the wine of a prominent Potions Master? I mean, did they really think he wouldn't have an antidote lying around? I assume he did, or we'd be here wearing black and in mourning?"

"Ah, well," Morrighan said, "Harry did some quick thinking, actually, and stuffed a bezoar down Ron's throat. Slughorn was a bit too shocked to manage much of anything at that moment."

"Bloody worthless idiot," Sirius hissed. "Now I see why Snivellus is the Order Potions Master and not Slughorn. At least Snivellus can work under pressure, despite his many faults."

Morrighan blinked.

Had Sirius just… complimented Severus? Out loud? In a public place?

Well, it had been more of a begrudging admission of Severus's merits than actual complimenting, but it was a good first step, Morrighan realized. Maybe there was hope yet, not of friendship, obviously, but at least of the possibility that one day Sirius would learn to respect Severus, or his memory.

"Anyway, the thing is nobody was trying to kill Slughorn," Morrighan said softly. "The wine in question had been purchased as a gift for Dumbledore."

"Ah," Sirius said, "and they underestimated Slughorn's desire to consume all expensive and lush gifts. That's a really bad murder attempt."

"Yeah," Morrighan said. "Anyway, I figured since Ron's having an especially bad birthday this year we ought to come around and try to leave some things to cheer him up, as well as everyone else around him."

"Is he unconscious?"

"Yeah," Morrighan said, kissing Sirius's lips gently when she noticed there were a couple of young girls watching them around the corner, which giggled and rushed away at this sight. "Now come on and let's go and see what sort of shape he's in, all right?"

She was going to turn to go, but Sirius stopped her, moving his hand to her neck and pulling her face closer to his so that their foreheads were touching.

"Kiss me again," he whispered. "Please."

"Sirius, we should really–"

"_Please_," he whispered huskily, his eyes closed, although she knew they would be dark with lust behind his lids. She oughtn't to do so, she knew, in the middle of the hallway of a school, but she could taste his breath mingling with hers and she wanted to taste his lips again as badly as he seemed to want hers.

"We're in public," she pointed out weakly.

"I don't care," he sighed, and without any more reasonable reasons to refuse him she gently pressed her lips to his slightly parted ones, feeling the rush of happy chemicals her brain released and sighing a little into the kiss. If they hadn't been in the middle of Hogwarts mere yards away from where Ron was lying on a hospital bed, unconscious, she would have begged for him to take her right there and then, up against the wall.

Morrighan heard a derisive, annoyed sound and turned to see a boy about Harry's age with blond hair, pale skin, and Slytherin robes with a prefect's badge pinned to his chest walking by them swiftly with an expression of pure disgust. Draco Malfoy.

"You did that to bother him, didn't you?" Morrighan asked Sirius when Malfoy had left. "You wanted to make him uncomfortable when you saw him there?"

"I didn't like the way he was lingering about, darling," Sirius said, kissing her forehead. "And the way he was looking at your arse. And I'll take any excuse to kiss my beautiful wife."

Morrighan wondered why Draco was lingering about so far from the dungeons so early in the morning. He must have heard tell of Ron's poisoning somehow, must have realized his half-hearted attempt to kill Dumbledore had failed again, and now he probably realized that Morrighan knew. How much had he overheard? How much did he know or guess about her? Suddenly she felt very unsafe and exposed in the Hogwarts corridor.

"Sirius," she whispered, trying to keep the fear and anxiety out of her voice. "Kiss me, please."

He frowned slightly.

"Weren't you the one who was saying how we needed to–?"

"Shut up and kiss me," she hissed and without another second's hesitation Sirius pressed his lips against hers once more, eagerly, tenderly, and far more demandingly than either kiss she had instigated. She sighed a little at the sensation, gripping his upper arms tightly and feeling his strong arms wrap around her. This, this was how she felt safest. This was how she restored her sense of security in a world she knew was so very unsecure, would only get worse.

As she allowed his teeth to graze her lip she wondered what would become of her when the Muggleborn Registration Commission happened… What would happen to Sirius? Well, Sirius was a pureblood, but he was well-known to be closely allied with Dumbledore. And she, she didn't even exist much less have any sort of connection to a pureblood relative other than her husband. Her children would be fun, but her? Morrighan would have to go into hiding again, she was sure of it. Was there anything she could do to change–?

No.

No, she couldn't change any more. She had really changed too much already, saving Sirius's life but putting him even more in danger.

There were things, she realized, things that were wrong. Sirius still had his two-way mirror, she realized. She would have to make sure she took Aberforth's place, to have a chat with him at some point about how things were supposed to happen, about what he would have to do… That could wait until his brother was dead. And Dobby… she would have to knowingly send Dobby to his death. And if she and Sirius went back to hiding in Grimmauld Place… had Mundungus stolen the locket yet? Would he? And what about Hermione accidentally compromising Grimmauld Place after the trip to the Ministry?

What had she done? Her very presence created added complications, but she had saved a man, changed the course of the story in fundamental ways, and even brought children into the world she had inherently made even more unstable than it had already been. Would they still have a happy ending for all of her meddling? Was it even possible?

Finally, she knew she had to face the present and deal with what would come when it came. Pulling away from Sirius she kissed his lips gently one more time and said, "Thank you, love. Let's go."


	23. Twist

The following week, Morrighan and Sirius received notice that Harry had joined Ron in the hospital wing and they made another trip to Hogwarts. Sirius asked her what happened on the way and Morrighan explained to him the circumstances of the disastrous Quidditch match and Sirius was obviously trying very hard not to laugh. It was comical, she had to admit, even if she wanted to rip McClaggen limb from limb for being such a self-centered moron.

"How do you two feel?" she asked them, pulling up a chair between the two beds, Sirius copying her.

"Like I want to kill McClaggen," Harry muttered bitterly.

"Get in line," Morrighan said cheerfully. "And you, Ron, still pretending to be asleep whenever Lavender comes in?"

"You've been doing that?" Sirius teased. "Trouble in paradise?"

"She's driving me crazy," Ron grumbled. "The bird's off her rocker."

"Yes," Morrighan conceded, "that's true, but it's sort of mean of you, leading her on this way, Ron. Can't you break if off gently?"

"Have you ever tried being gentle with a girl?" Ron said, disbelieving. "They think they know what you're saying better than you do and then you're stuck right back where you were!"

Morrighan didn't point out that most sane girls would know what he was saying better than him anyway, although she certainly was thinking it.

"Ron," Sirius said with a chuckle, "I understand the desire to just make her get fed up with waiting, but you've roped a crazy one and I don't think it's going to be that simple. She's latched onto you like a pitbull and you've got to give her a damn good reason to let go or she won't."

"Like what?" Ron asked, sitting up a little bit.

"Like telling her to bugger off because you're not interested."

Ron groaned, clearly not liking the answer. Sirius just laughed and said, "Trust me, it's not worth spending time with a girl who's crazy about you if you can't stand her. There's someone out there who will be crazy about you without you have to hide in the hospital wing from her." He paused. "What would you have done if you hadn't been poisoned?"

"Slowly gone out of my mind," Ron muttered, ears turning pink, pulling the covers up a bit higher. In a way, Morrighan felt sorry that she'd started the discussion of poor Ron's love life. He clearly didn't even want to think about it. But on the other hand, it would only do him good to hear from people he respected that he ought to go about it in a more mature way. Harry, on the other hand, didn't seem to want to talk about Ron's love life either.

"How are the girls?" he asked Sirius, eager to change the subject.

"Great," Sirius said, beaming. He went off on a story about how Kitty and Tiffany were sharing a blanket the other day while they watched him make a sparks show with his wand. He loved making little shiny things that didn't have any substance for them to marvel at.

Harry smiled a little, sitting up a little straighter.

"And how are you feeling, Morrighan?" he asked with a grin. "Two more little ones on the way already! Have you thought of names?"

She laughed.

"I'm feeling fine, thank you," she said, lacing her fingers through Sirius's. "This goon spoils me and between him and Winky caring for the girls you'd think I was a bed-ridden invalid unable to care for my own daughters, but sometimes he still lets me feed them or bathe them, so there's something."

Sirius pouted playfully and Morrighan said, "You boys entertain yourselves for a bit, all right? I've got something I need to take care of."

"I'll go with you," Sirius said immediately, standing with her, but she shook her head, pushing him back down into his seat.

"No, stay and keep the boys company. I'll be back soon."

"Where are you going?" Sirius demanded, worried.

"I'll be back soon," Morrighan repeated.

"Love, there's someone trying to kill somebody in this castle, I don't want you leaving my sight," Sirius said firmly.

She simply kissed his cheek and gave him an airy laugh.

"That's always going on here, darling. You forget that I know who the attempted murderer is and that they're not going to kill me," Morrighan sang as she tapped his nose gently.

"Is it Draco?" Harry said eagerly, sitting up straighter.

"I'll see you soon," she said, frowning at him, making sure he knew he wasn't supposed to ask for information about the future.

Morrighan went along until she ran into a student and then asked for directions to Professor Snape's office, unable to remember how to get there except that it was on the way to the dungeons. The study she came across was a sweet-looking young Slytherin girl who happily told Morrighan where Professor Snape could be found, and Morrighan thanked the girl, heading to his office as quickly as she could.

With only slightly hesitation, Morrighan took a deep breath and knocked firmly on the door.

"Enter," said the voice she knew so well, though not with the tone Severus used with her, typically. Morrighan opened the door and marched in to find Severus turning away from the door in his chair, looking at his low-burning fireplace. Slowly, he turned to see who had come to see him, probably expecting some trouble-making student, and his face lit up ever-so-slightly at the sight of Morrighan closing the door behind her, rushing toward his desk.

He stood swiftly and came around to meet her and they surprised each other by embracing each other in a hug. She could tell by how tightly he gripped her to him that he had wanted to see her as badly as she had wanted to see him.

"It's been months, Severus," she whispered. "I almost tried thinking of some really complicated potion I needed brewed because there's hardly any other way I would get to see you, what with your lack of presence at meetings and not visiting the manor like everybody else."

"Your husband would kill me," he muttered, sliding into a chair, and Morrighan took the one across from him. He rested his elbow on the desk and buried his face in his hand. "You're pregnant again, Albus tells me."

"Yes," Morrighan said, for the first time feeling tears forming. "Severus, I'm afraid."

He looked up at her.

"_You're_ afraid?" he scoffed. "You know, I presume, what I have to do?"

Morrighan nodded.

"Yes," she said softly. "And you'll do it, and it's the right thing."

"But how can it be the right thing, Morrighan?" he hissed, clearly distraught. "How? I swore, once I took it upon myself to protect him for her sake, I swore I would never kill again, much less stand by and watch someone else be killed if I could prevent it. How can killing ever be the right thing?"

His eyes were so wild that Morrighan couldn't help but try to ease his mind, if only just a little bit.

"Severus," she said softly, "you know he's dying. You know he's going to die anyway. Do you want Draco to have to do it?"

"Of course not," he snapped.

"Would you rather Bellatrix or Greyback do it?"

"No."

"You see, of course, how important it is for your own mission that you be the one to relieve him of his pain," she said softly, patting his arm. "If I could be the one to do so, Severus, I would, but it has to be you. I'm afraid it's going to seem very thankless and for a long time your life will be even more difficult, but Severus, I'll know what happened, and I'll never stop being grateful. Is that enough?"

"I die," he said softly. "You don't have to tell me if I'm right or wrong. I know I die. I must. It's no more than I deserve for the things I've done. But tell me, do I die remembered as a… as a criminal? Do they remember me as the man who killed Albus Dumbledore?"

"No," Morrighan whispered, tears filling her eyes. "No, that's not what you're remembered for."

Severus nodded, though it was clear that there was some disquiet in him, that he was not truly satisfied. But it would have to do for the time being.

"And you?" he said softly. "What are you afraid of?"

"Everything," Morrighan whispered, staring at a point in the distance without really looking at it. "Sirius wasn't supposed to live, and I made it my own selfish goal to save his life, and I thought I had done something good. Everybody said so. And then I… Well, now I've got the girls and Sirius and I'm worried because I know how things are supposed to go and I'm afraid I might have changed too much, that now I'm putting even more people in danger than would have been so."

Severus gave her a sympathetic look, reaching out and squeezing her hand gently.

"If it causes any quiet in your mind," he said, "I'm very glad you're here, and I know I'm not the only one."

"But did I do the right thing?" she whispered. "Severus, I'm certainly happy that you're glad I'm here, but I'm terrified that I overstepped, making Sirius live. I mean, I could have caused someone else to die. I could have killed Tonks!"

"But you didn't," he said firmly. "Don't you think it's not worth dwelling over things that could have happened at this point? All you can do is your best to keep things as they ought to be moving forward from this point."

"You're right, of course," she sighed. "But I'm afraid."

"It's going to be all right," he whispered. "Besides, you have to be all right. Don't worry too much. You've got the children to think of."

"There will be more," she said, without thinking. Then, she and Severus looked at each other, surprised, confused, anxious.

"What did you just say?" he whispered.

"There will be more children," she said, again, her voice seeming to act of its own accord. "Many more children."

"How do you know that?" he whispered, holding her chin in his hand and looking into her eyes.

"I – I don't know," she breathed, trying to figure out where the words had come from. "Severus I don't know what just happened–"

"May I?" he asked, pulling out his wand and looking into her eyes. He wanted to look into her mind. Morrighan nodded.

"_Legilimens_."

She could feel him poking around her thoughts and memories, searching for what had just happened. Moments with Sirius were pushed aside quickly while times with the two of them were examined for a moment, as if trying to decide if it was this conversation or another.

When he finally pulled out of her head he was frowning and Morrighan was shaking from the strangeness of it all. He studied her face for a moment and said finally, "I think… I think we ought to take you to Albus. I think… I think you just Saw."

"But – but that wasn't anything like what Trelawney's visions are described as," Morrighan reasoned. "Severus, I can't have Seen."

"It's not always the same," Severus said slowly. "Come, it's better to discuss with Albus than to try to figure this out ourselves. He's been alive much longer and knows far more about fringe areas such as Divination than I, despite his distaste for it."

Morrighan followed Severus up the stairs, up many flights of stairs, and to Albus Dumbledore's office, where he was looking over a batch of vials in a cabinet, searching for something.

"Headmaster," Severus said sharply, "this cannot wait. I believe Morrighan may have Seen."

Albus turned to them, raising his eyebrows.

"Really, Severus?" he said mildly, taking a seat at his desk. "I thought you were quite negatively disposed toward the study of Divination."

"And I always shall be," Severus growled. "But she essentially foretold that she will have many more offspring, doesn't know why she said it, and when I looked into her mind there were thoughts surrounding the statement which I could not access, which she could not access in her current state of mind which means–"

"That they are from another state of consciousness, or from another consciousness," Albus said, pressing the tips of his fingers together and bringing them to his lips thoughtfully. "My dear, in all the time you spent studying Divination, did you have any visions?"

"No, I don't think so," Morrighan said honestly. "Sometimes, when I was in my other life, I would say things and they happened. It happened to my mother, too, all the time. We joked about it, but didn't think anything of it. But this, this was stronger, wrong, like someone else was deciding my words for me I didn't like it."

Albus considered a moment more in silence, then looked at her, narrowed his eyes a little and said, "Morrighan, I believe Severus is right. I believe you have a weak, diluted form of the Sight. This is likely the form in which your accidental magic manifested itself, and so it went unnoticed."

"You mean all those years–?"

Albus nodded, and Morrighan stared at him, dumbstruck. She had been a witch all her life and just hadn't realized. How much of her family had been magical? Her mother, it seemed… Her niece, surely, and probably her sister….

But it really didn't matter, she realized, because none of it was documented, so as far as the magical world she lived in was concerned she was a Muggleborn, and that didn't do anything for the problems that would be happening in less than a year's time.

"I should be getting back to the infirmary," she said sharply. "Sirius will start to worry."

"Very well," Albus said with a nod. "Morrighan, I suggest keeping some sort of notation of these occurrences. There may be a pattern of the things you're seeing."

"Yes, Albus," she said, wondering why it mattered. After all, she already knew the future of this world. What could she possibly see that told her anything new?

But as Morrighan walked back to the infirmary she realized there were things she didn't know, things that had changed as a result of her being there in the first place. She didn't know what might have changed because of her saving Sirius. And after all, she had said there would be more children… there would be _many_ more children…

How many was many? Well, Sirius would certainly be pleased, she thought, snorting with laughter at the thought. Sirius would be thrilled. But that meant….

Did it mean that she and Sirius would survive? Or, that Morrighan would survive, at least… and how long of a span would these "many more children" come over? Would they have four at once and then both die? There were still so many possibilities.

She pushed it from her mind as she crossed the threshold into the infirmary and saw Sirius telling some animated tale to the boys, who were both red with laughter. She smiled.

Harry cleared his throat when he spotted Morrighan and pointed Sirius's attention to her and Sirius abruptly stopped whatever tale he was telling, which made her a bit suspicious, but she simply raised an eyebrow as he rushed toward her, picking her up and twirling her around happily.

"I missed you, love," he whispered, kissing her forehead. "What took you so long?"

"Got lost," Morrighan lied. "Were you boys able to properly entertain yourselves while I was gone?"

"Well," Harry said, "we were certainly entertained, but I can't say there was anything proper about it."

They all laughed, but Harry was starting to look a bit tired, so Morrighan said they had to go, that the girls would be waking up soon and that she didn't want to bother Ron and Harry anymore, so Sirius and Morrighan said their goodbyes and made their way back to Black Manor, where indeed the girls were starting to wake up and Winky was greeting them.

"Master and Mistress is back!" she squeaked. "Little Misses is waking."

"Thank you, Winky," Sirius said kindly. "Would you please get Morrighan some tea? I'll go tend to the girls."

"I can do it," Morrighan protested, but Sirius kissed her forehead.

"Love, you look exhausted," he said. "I know a lot of that's my fault, but please, let me do this. You rest. We've got to take care of our other little girls," he cooed, gently patting her belly.

Morrighan sighed, following Winky into the kitchen were the house-elf was busy making a pot of tea.

"Thank you, Winky," Morrighan said, sinking down into one of the kitchen chairs. "It's already been a long day."

"Mistress is quite tired?" Winky squeaked as she put the tea down in front of Morrighan. "Winky can get Mistress some lemon for the tea, it should wake Mistress up."

"No thank you, Winky," she sighed. "This should be quite fine."

"Yes, Mistress!"

Sirius came in with Nikki in his arms, Kitty and Tiffany strapped to his torso.

"Look who came to see Mummy," he said, grinning, handing Nikki over to her mother.

"Hello, sweetheart," Morrighan cooed, kissing Nikki's forehead and tapping Kitty's nose gently as Sirius unstrapped Tiffany and held her in his arm.

The simply sat there playing with the girls, playing in the kitchen as Morrighan drank her tea. She couldn't help smiling to herself, watching Sirius playing with their daughters, knowing that he would soon have two more to play with. In fact, according to her sort-of prophecy, there would be many children. For some reason, while watching Sirius being a father, those words felt more comforting than they had in Albus's office, thinking of all the things that could go wrong.

Severus was right. She still had control, knowing what was coming. It was a great advantage. Morrighan would simply have to focus her energies on turning that information to her advantage, to continue protecting the people that she cared about.


	24. Sex Life Interruptions

Morrighan awoke a little over a week later to Tonks shaking her and Sirius. She sat up abruptly, staring at her friend with a bit of fear and confusion.

"Um, Tonks?" she said, confused.

"Morrighan," Tonks said urgently as Sirius groaned and started to sit up.

"How the fuck did you get in here?" Sirius sighed.

"Winky let me in," she said. "It's urgent."

Sirius was wide awake at this, eyes wide with fear.

"Is it Harry? Is there something for the Order?"

"N-no," Tonks said, eyes filling with tears.

"Oh," Morrighan said, doing some quick math in her head and realizing what Tonks was referring to. "We haven't heard from Remus since Christmas, if that's what you're here about, Tonks," she said softly. Would you like to have a seat?"

"She bloody well does not get a seat," Sirius grumbled, turning over in bed so that his back was to them. "Waking me up at sick hours of the morning, crazy little–"

"Sirius, shut up," Morrighan sighed.

"Yes, dear," he growled.

Tonks raised her eyebrows through her tears.

"You've certainly got him whipped, don't you?" she muttered, crawling onto the bed beside Morrighan. "Nice nightie."

Morrighan rolled her eyes as Sirius grunted indignantly.

"Look, Tonks," Morrighan said, rather less gently than she might have otherwise, "Remus is fine. He's being a prat. You're letting him be a prat, and in a couple of months' time things will come to a head and you'll be fine, all right? As much as I hate to see you mope like this, I know you're not going to listen to me so it doesn't matter. Just breathe, cry if you need to cry, and get to your job. Be patient and I promise it'll pay off."

"I just… I just love him so much," Tonks moaned, and Morrighan could feel Sirius shifting uncomfortably in the bed beside her.

"I know," Morrighan said sympathetically, rubbing Tonks's back as she saw tears fall from Tonks's eyes.

She wanted so badly to tell her that Remus loved her, or would come to love her, but it wasn't her place. If he hadn't said it yet he might not have even realized it yet himself, or perhaps he wouldn't say it the same way… It wouldn't be right to put that sort of pressure and expectation on the relationship, so she simply patted Tonks's back with one hand and raked the nails of her other hand up Sirius's thigh, and she felt him stiffen under her touch.

Morrighan continued to comfort Tonks as she continued to tease Sirius, who was finding it harder and harder to pretend to be asleep as she worked her hand into his boxers. The tension in his body escalated and he actually yelped a little bit as she wrapped her hand around him and began teasing him firmly.

Tonks frowned and Morrighan shrugged innocently.

At first, Tonks just ignored it, clearly thinking it was just Sirius being weird. But then, she heard him give a long, gasping moan and her eyes widened with shock.

"Are you beating off your husband while I'm in crisis?"

Morrighan tried to blink and look innocent, but Sirius moaned her name at that precise moment as he came and Tonks just glared at Morrighan for a moment before the both burst out laughing.

Sirius turned over, looking dreamy, but a bit affronted.

"What are you two laughing at?" he said quietly. They started to laugh again. "Cousin, please leave, I need to screw my wife into the mattress and while I'm sure that sounds intriguing, I work alone."

Tonks screwed up her face and suddenly Morrighan saw an almost exact version of herself sitting where Tonks had been.

"What," Tonks teased, "you're not interested in watching your wife make out with herself?"

Sirius blinked and Morrighan tried to hide her disgust at the realization that he was actually considering it. He stared back and forth between them for quite a while before turning to Tonks and saying, "You know if you weren't my baby cousin, I might have actually taken you up on that offer. As it is, that's a bit disgusting, Dora. Out."

Tonks just laughed as she turned back to her old self and wandered out the door, leaving Sirius to roll over onto Morrighan and begin kissing her neck.

"That was a cruel, dirty trick," Sirius whispered. "That was absolutely unfair."

"Thought it might cheer you up," Morrighan gasped, squirming a bit beneath him as he ran his tongue along her jaw.

"Oh, it certainly did," he hissed. "Cheered me up, turned me on, and made me absolutely ache for you. Now that doesn't seem very fair to me. Does it seem fair to you?"

"Don't know how you mean," she whined as he pressed his knee into her groin and she ground against him.

"I'm going to get you so turned on," he growled into her ear, "that you beg for me."

It didn't take as long as he probably thought it would. Morrighan's pregnancy hormones drove her crazy much faster than when she wasn't pregnant and she was begging in a matter of minutes, squirming, grinding, writhing, moaning and pleading with him, and Sirius ever-so-graciously gave in to her demands, pounding her long and hard until she couldn't stand any more.

"I love you," he moaned as he came, mashing his lips against hers. "I love you."

When they finally collapsed in each other's arms, Morrighan sighed.

"Well, are you cheered up now?" she murmured into his shoulder, and he just snorted with weak laughter.

"Absolutely, darling," he whispered. "Absolutely."

They spent much of the rest of the morning cuddled up together, knowing that if the girls woke up Winky would be more than capable of handling them.

"Have you thought of names yet?" he whispered, rubbing his hand over her stomach. "Do you have any ideas?"

"Not yet," Morrighan muttered. "Maybe they'll come to me as they come out, like last time."

Sirius groaned.

More than a month went by until Morrighan received an urgent letter from Harry.

"What does it say?" Sirius asked, leaning over his wife's shoulder to get a peak.

"It says Ron finally broke up with Lavender," Morrighan said, snapping the parchment shut so that her nosy husband couldn't invade his godson's privacy. "And Ginny broke up with Dean."

"What, all this week?" Sirius said attempting to tickle Morrighan in an effort to obtain the parchment.

"No," she giggled. "Last night." She caught her breath, turned and kissed her husband and said, "And he didn't know it when he wrote this, but Katie Bell is back at school today, as well."

"My, my, eventful day," he teased. "Molly's coming over later, you know, to see the girls. Do you want me to tell her of all the unfortunate events in the love lives of her children?"

"I'd rather you didn't," Morrighan sighed, kissing him again, a bit more forcefully, and he didn't object. In fact, he pushed her down on the couch, running his fingers through her hair before trailing kisses down her neck, his tongue tracing the hollow of her throat.

"How about I screw you into the couch?" he hissed.

"How about you wait until after Molly's gone for the day?" Morrighan moaned, wishing the way her body arched into his in spite of her swollen belly and her verbal reluctance wouldn't betray her.

"That could be so long," he groaned against her skin. "Please, love, I'm begging of you."

"You'll be begging forgiveness if Molly knocks when you're so far inside me you can't back down without making yourself go mad with longing all day," she quipped at him. In spite of her words, she hoped against hope that Sirius might ignore her logic and seduce her anyway.

To her surprise, he sighed heavily, nodded, kissed her once gently on the lips and said, "I'll go get the girls ready to see their godmother, then."

Morrighan blinked in surprise and tried to ignore the part of her that was actually a bit disappointed. Sirius had just behaved… maturely. Like a mature adult. Like a father.

Was there some sort of massive apocalypse happening?

No, Morrighan decided, he was just finally growing up. It had taken fatherhood and… and her? She liked to think that maybe the thought of her saving his life had sobered him up and matured him a bit, but it was probably fatherhood.

She straightened herself up and made tea for Molly. Sirius came in with the girls strapped to him, and he kissed her cheek gently and she smiled a little to herself, pouring three cups of tea.

Winky came in, going about breakfast at high speed.

"Good morning, Winky," Sirius said brightly. "We have company today."

"Yes, Master!" Winky squeaked happily. "Mistress Molly is coming for breakfast."

"That's right," Morrighan said with a sigh. "And she ought to be here any minute."

There was a knock at the door and Sirius said, "Speak of the devil…"

Morrighan swatted him playfully as they rushed to the door.

"I never should have taught you that saying," she hissed as he tickled her a little bit to slow her down so he could beat her to the door.

"Who is it?" he asked, his voice full of gravity, holding none of the playfulness it had had when dealing with his wife.

"Molly," said Molly's voice. "Morrighan spent her first night with us in a room with Hermione and Ginny."

"Correct," Morrighan said.

"I know it's you," she snapped. "Now let me in to see my godchildren, Sirius."

"Yes, ma'am."

They flung the door wide and greeted Molly warmly. She hugged Morrighan, commented on how lovely she looked, asked how the pregnancy was coming, and then greeted Sirius, taking Tiffany from him as he held her out for her to hold. Morrighan took Nikki and the three of them headed in to the kitchen, where Winky was just laying out breakfast and the tea Morrighan had made.

"Good morning, Winky," Molly said brightly.

"Good morning, Mistress Molly," Winky squeaked.

"Oh, breakfast looks delicious," Molly sighed, settling down. "So nice to not have to cook for once."

"How is everyone?" Morrighan asked, taking a sip of tea.

"Oh, well, Bill's doing Order work, but you saw him fairly recently," Molly mused. "Arthur's knee-deep in his new promotion. The twins say business just keeps getting better and better. And Charlie sends his love from Romania. He doesn't tell us much of what he gets up to for Dumbledore, which worries me, of course, but he assures me it's not anywhere near as dangerous as what Tonks and the like are doing."

"Well, few things are more dangerous than being an Auror," Morrighan said with an agreeing nod. "I think Remus and Tonks must be spending all of their time and energy worrying about each other. She comes here every so often, asking if we've heard from him. I expect he'll be coming back to us soon."

"Yes, poor Tonks," Molly said with a sad nod. "It's so obvious that he cares for her. I just don't understand why he's being stubborn about this."

"Moony's always been very careful about his condition," Sirius said sadly. "He tried to hold everyone he could at an arm's length, for their safety and to keep himself from getting his hopes up. It's a sad way to live."

"Indeed," Molly agreed. After a moment of silence and sipping of tea, Molly brightened and said, "So, have you thought of names for the little ones on the way?"

For several hours, the adults socialized with each other and with the girls, talking little of politics and the Remus/Tonks situation and more about children, parenting, and the joys of both. When it was finally time for Molly to go, the girls were on their way down for a nap, taken by Winky, and Sirius murmured in Morrighan's ear the second the front door closed, "So how about now, love?"

Two weeks later, Morrighan found herself thankful that Sirius had left to go shopping with the girls for more toys because Severus showed up unannounced.

"You're lucky Sirius isn't home," she said, trying to remember what had happened and why he looked so utterly furious.

"And you're lucky I didn't wring Potter's neck," he hissed. "Do you know what he did?"

"Of course I know," she said calmly, "I'm just having a hard time remembering at the moment. Enlighten me."

"Perhaps his use of Dark Magic rings a bell," Severus snarled. "Almost killing a fellow student might be familiar as well."

"Ah," Morrighan sighed sadly. "And how is Draco?"

"He will live," Severus snapped. "I need to prove the boy is lying to me, Morrighan. I need you to testify that he stole that book, that he knowingly used Dark Magic, and that he's been cheating in Potions!"

"I won't," Morrighan said calmly, despite the fact that Severus was right up in her face at this point, practically spitting with anger.

"You won't?" he roared. "And why not?"

"Because he's already got detention, Severus," she explained. "You may think you want him expelled, but think carefully. Is that really the best thing to preserve his life?"

"He's cheating in class!"

"And he won't beyond this point, you have my word."

"Those are my spells, Morrighan!"

"But he doesn't know that!" Morrighan cried. "He doesn't know you're the Half-Blood Prince and he won't figure it out until you tell him."

"And why should I tell him that?" Severus hissed.

Morrighan took a deep breath, sighing heavily.

"Severus, I can't tell you these things. He has detention. He'll be miserable. His Potions grades will slip. Isn't that enough for you?"

Severus didn't answer, merely glaring at her stubbornly. Morrighan sighed.

"Look, Severus, I know you're angry. I know you're under a lot of stress right now and that the near death of one of the boys you're trying to protect has made you sort of snap, but you need to calm yourself and look to the bigger picture. For me to intervene in anyway would be for me to change events in ways, in this case, that could alter the course of history so much in such a negative fashion that… that I might not be able to salvage it. Please, Severus, please."

He nodded sharply, swallowing, and she could tell he was absolutely breaking from the stress of his burdens. She reached out and grasped his shoulder sympathetically, pursing her lips together.

There was a pop of Apparation behind Severus and they both turned to view Sirius with the girls strapped to him and quite a lot of shopping dangling from his arms.

"What are you doing in my doorway, Snivellus?" he snarled.

"I had to discuss something with your wife," Severus said silkily. "But seeing as she can be no help to me, I must be on my way. Tell me, Black, are those toys for you or the children?"

"Please, both of you, don't do this," Morrighan sighed. "I don't have the energy and the girls don't need to see it. Severus, would you like to come in, meet the girls?"

"He's not touching my children, Morrighan," Sirius snapped. "And I want him off my property."

"Our property," Morrighan hissed, "and our children. They are not yours, they're ours. Severus is a friend of mine and he has every right to be here and every right to meet our daughters. If you can't be civil, don't be a part of the conversation."

"Never mind," Severus said quickly, and surprisingly kindly. "I really must be going. I – I didn't mean to cause discord between you. I really shouldn't have come in the first place. You're right, Morrighan, I shouldn't have over-reacted."

"Severus, please," she began, but he just shook his head.

"I hope to see you again soon," he said. "Before…"

He didn't finish the sentence, but Morrighan knew he meant before he had to kill Albus. She nodded.

"I hope so too," she whispered.

"And if I don't see you again, Black," Severus said, turning to Sirius, "while I don't think I could ever really forgive you, I'm willing to try for Morrighan's sake."

Sirius narrowed his eyes.

"Why would you do that?" he said suspiciously.

"Because," Severus said slowly, "if I die in this war I would rather I was remembered for the good I tried to do than my petty grudges and fights. You may have tried to kill me, but as Morrighan said, I've never been fully blameless and I apologize."

"It's a rather loaded apology," Sirius began sharply, but he caught his wife's expression and said with a sigh, "and I accept it. For what it's worth, I'm glad I didn't kill you. Morrighan tells me you've saved Harry a few times."

Severus nodded.

"I've done my best," he said modestly, "but it hasn't always been easy."

The three of them laughed a little, knowingly.

"Yes, he takes after James that way, I suppose," Sirius said proudly, and Severus very nearly said something derisive, but caught Morrighan's expression of warning and subsided.

"Are you sure you can't come in, Severus?" she said. "I can make tea."

"No, really, I must be going back to the school," Severus insisted.

"Well, at least meet the girls," Sirius said, gesturing to the sleepy-looking children strapped to his torso. "Morrighan wants you to, I know," he added quickly as Severus and Morrighan turned to him, surprised.

With a moment's hesitation, Severus agreed and was introduced to each of the girls on his way out, patting them each awkwardly on the head. Kitty actually reached up and grabbed his nose, much to Sirius and Morrighan's delight, and then he left, apologizing once more.

"Why did you do that?" Morrighan asked, taking Tiffany from him and some of the bags, leading him into the house.

"Because," he whispered, kissing her on the cheek, "it was important to you. He's right. It's worth at least trying to reconcile for your sake."

She smiled.

"Thank you," she said, kissing his lips. "Now let's put the girls down for a nap so I can thank you properly."


	25. Change

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to **_**Sooph**_**, who is now following and reviewing this story. **_**Sooph's**_** reviews warmed my heart and led my fingers across the keyboards, giving me that swift kick of inspiration necessary to finish of the last few hundred words. **_**Sooph**_**, I hope you enjoy this chapter and I hope you continue to read and review as this journey goes forward! And all you other readers, I might dedicate a chapter to YOU if you review or alert, so get reviewing!**

**-J**

Later that week, Morrighan was the proud recipient of three very excited letters from Hogwarts. Ron's detailed the victory of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and their acquiring of the Quidditch Cup. Ginny's and Harry's also detailed the excitement of the Quidditch Cup winning, but also the excitement about their first kiss, and the fact that they were suddenly and happily a couple. Ron was a bit less excited about the matter, but he was, as Harry put it, incredibly and surprisingly accepting of the whole thing.

"My little godson is all grown up," Sirius sighed. "Is this the one, Morrighan?"

For a moment, Morrighan debated whether or not to tell him. He promised not to say a word, and so she said, "Yeah, they end up together."

Sirius grinned, pumped his fist in the air and said, "I get a feisty redheaded goddaughter by marriage! Yes!"

Morrighan frowned as she laughed.

"Goddaughter-in-law? Is that how that works? You get to claim Ginny because she's going to marry Harry?"

Sirius frowned.

"No, Harry's your godson-in-law because you married me. Ginny's just by marriage."

"Are you sure it's not the other way around?"

"Nope."

Morrighan took every opportunity to laugh, knowing that even with five kids their opportunities to laugh were going to be fewer soon.

Over a month later, Morrighan received a letter from Dumbledore that made her feel sick.

_Dear Morrighan,_

_I wanted to let you know that Harry and I are going to look for it tonight. I do not wish to know how it turns out. I have my thoughts and suspicions, and no matter what happens tonight I do understand that my time for watching over Harry is near its end. I ask that you continue to guide him down the path he must take._

_Forgive me, but I also must beg of you not to interfere in these events at all. I don't think that you would, but if the thought has even crossed your mind, I want you to know that I would die sooner or later and if that night is tonight or next month, when I will have had my injury for a year, the day is very soon and there is nothing you can do about that._

_Take care of Sirius. Take care of Harry. I trust that you will do what needs to be done as the days darken, but remember to take care of yourself, or I think things will change again, but for the worse._

_-Albus_

Morrighan clutched the letter tightly. She hadn't even thought of interfering, which showed what a terrible person she was. Or... or maybe it showed that she understood just how little good it would have done. As he said, even if she managed to save him that night, she wouldn't have managed it in the long run. He was already dying, and there was nothing they could do.

"Is that a letter?" Sirius asked, sitting down across from her.

"Um, yes," Morrighan said. "I, uh, got a letter from Albus."

"Albus?" Sirius said anxiously. "Something with the Order? Or about Harry? Is everything okay?"

Morrighan bit her lip. They were closing in on a time when Sirius was going to have to know more than everybody else, that he was going to have to help her and hide her and give her the tools to help Harry, guide Harry as Dumbledore had asked. With hesitation, she took his hand and said, "I need to tell you things, but I need you to swear to me, to make an Unbreakable Vow that you won't tell anyone else unless I give you permission."

"Not... not even Harry?" Sirius said, concerned.

"Especially not Harry," Morrighan said honestly. "I'm not saying I'll never give permission, but it's important that you do this, which is why I'm asking for the Unbreakable Vow. Sometimes you get worked up and you ignore the promises you've made. I don't want you to ignore this one, no matter what."

Sirius nodded, scooting closer to her, taking her hand, and saying, "Would you like me to take the Vow now?"

"Yeah," Morrighan said softly, trying to ignore how dizzy she felt, his lips so close to hers. "Will... will it hurt the girls?"

"No, I don't think so," Sirius said. "Not hurt them, anyway, but I can't promise it won't have any impact at all."

Morrighan nibbled on her lip, trying to decide if it was worth changing the pregnancy. Maybe she didn't have to tell him yet. Maybe she could wait for... September?

Could it really wait that long? Albus was about to die. Harry was going to be a mess. Remus and Tonks would be getting married soon. And then it wasn't long at all before Mad-Eye died, George lost an ear, and the Ministry fell. She would have to tell him something before the birth of their daughters, because she would have to go into hiding when the Muggle-born Registration came about, and that was before Hogwarts started up again.

"Sirius," she whispered, "I don't know if we can do the Vow. I... We don't know what it would do to the girls and I don't think we should..."

"Of course," Sirius said, nodding.

"But I need to tell you things," she sighed, "and I need to tell you now. And I'm scared, because you can't tell anyone. You have to promise!"

"I swear it," Sirius whispered, kissing her hands. "What is it that's got you so upset?"

She chewed on her lip for a moment before saying, "All this year, Harry's been learning Voldemort's secret. The reason he's not dead, the reason he could be brought back, is because he made horcruxes. He split his soul seven times and contained the pieces in important objects. Harry's already destroyed one by accident and Albus destroyed one over the summer. They've found what they think is another. They're going to get it tonight, and extra Order members are going to be protecting the castle while they're gone."

"Do they find it?" Sirius breathed. "The horcrux?"

"Not really," Morrighan sighs. "They find a substitute. He'll find it in the fall. Somebody got there first, but died before he could destroy it."

"Who?" Sirius said eagerly.

Morrighan gave him a sad smile and said, "Your brother, actually."

Sirius blinked, his mouth working for a moment without sound. Finally, he swallowed hard and said, "Regulus? That's how he died? But I thought they killed him!"

"No," she said softly. "He had a change of heart and figured out the horcruxes somehow. He knew he'd die if he tried to get out, so he tried to take down a piece of Voldemort with him, but it didn't manage to get it destroyed."

"Where is it now?" he said eagerly.

"I can't tell you that yet," Morrighan said in a forced-calm voice. Did he understand there were so many things she needed to tell him and almost no time at all?

"So what do they do when they realize it's not the horcrux?" Sirius pressed, obviously fascinated that she was finally telling him what was going to happen.

"They don't for a bit," she admitted. "Not until tomorrow, when Harry checks."

He furrowed his brow.

"Why would they wait for tomorrow to check? Why wouldn't they destroy it tonight?"

Morrighan sighed heavily and said, "Because when they get to Hogsmeade tonight, the Dark Mark will appear over the Astronomy Tower. The person who's been trying to kill Dumbledore all year will finally succeed in getting Death Eaters into the castle and... Dumbledore's going to die."

Sirius's eyes widened and he just stared at her for a moment.

"Wh-what do you mean? Who kills him?"

"It's a bit more complicated than that," she insisted. "You see, when he was destroying the last horcrux he came across and rather nasty curse. Severus was able to contain it, but only able to buy him a year at the most. Since they already knew that Draco Malfoy had been ordered to kill Dumbledore or be killed himself, Dumbledore asked Severus to kill him, when the time was right, so that Severus could keep his role as a Death Eater and look out for Harry with no suspicion from the supporters of Voldemort."

"How can you be-"

"Sure?" Morrighan snapped, frowning. "Because I know the story better than anyone here. He doesn't want to do it, Sirius. He's terrified! But would you rather a scared boy do it and rip his soul in two?"

"I suppose not," Sirius sighed. "I trust you. So... so there's nothing you can do?" he whispered.

"No," Morrighan said sadly. "No, there's nothing. He'll die in a month or so whether I was able to stop this or not. There's no help for that curse beyond what's already been done. That was what the letter was reminding me of. That, and telling me that I need to guide Harry. That's where I really need your support and help, because things are changing fast."

"What changes?"

"Well," Morrighan sighed, "two weddings this summer, someone's going to die when we get Harry away from his aunt and uncle, the Ministry falls to Voldemort, Muggle-borns have to go into hiding or suffer severely, so I'm sorry, but we'll have to go back to Grimmauld place for the better part of this coming year." She paused and thought for a moment. "There's a taboo on Voldemort's name at one point, so we'll have to start calling him You-Know-Who once the Ministry falls. That's about it for now, but you can't tell anyone any of that, not even Harry. Actually, especially not Harry."

He frowned, running his fingers through his hair. His gray eyes searched her face for a moment and then he said in a strained voice, "You're asking an awful lot of me, love. It has to be this way? Every bit of it?"

"Yes," she breathed, horrified that her voice was shaking.

She wouldn't cry. She wouldn't. She'd spent too long crying over it in fiction. Now that it was real, she had to be strong. She had to.

But when Sirius's frown deepened, Morrighan broke down, sobbing. His face instantly softened and he pulled her close to him, cradling her body gently. He petted her, whispering, "It's all right. Everything's going to be fine. I won't say a word and I'll do whatever you ask. I had hoped," he added bitterly, "that we'd be able to get by without raising the girls in that awful place at all, but I suppose beggars can't be choosers." Morrighan tried desperately to calm herself as she cried into Sirius's chest. "I love you," he sighed. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," she choked through the sobs. "I'm going to cry a lot this year," she admitted, "but that doesn't mean it doesn't end well."

"Well, we're going to make sure it's not all tears," Sirius whispered, hugging her tightly. "I love you, Morrighan. I wish we didn't have to go back to Grimmauld Place, but I suppose we made a few beautiful memories there, didn't we?"

She gave a watery laugh, looking up at him through her tears and kissing his cheek.

"That we did," Morrighan agreed. "Do you think Kreacher will be all right with our kids? I mean, he's not going to leave Grimmauld Place happily, and I think it would terrify Winky..."

"I hadn't thought of that," Sirius sighed. "I suppose you're right. Well, I think you probably will know how to get Kreacher to be civil? I promise to do whatever you want where he's concerned. My childhood grudges against him really aren't worth something happening to my girls."

"Yes," Morrighan said faintly. "Sirius, I... I think we're going to be hearing from people soon. In a few hours, someone's going to want to tell us what's been happening at the school today. Can you make some tea? I'm feeling a bit faint. Are the girls sleeping?"

"Yes, they're sleeping, and yes, I'll go make the tea," Sirius said gently, kissing her forehead and taking off for the kitchen. Morrighan stared at the coffee table, wringing her hands anxiously.

Almost the very moment Sirius handed her the tea, there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it," Sirius murmured.

Morrighan could feel her stomach tying in knots as the voices at the door spoke anxiously. They grew closer and she was able to pick out Remus and Tonks.

"Morrighan!" Tonks squealed, rushing happily to Morrighan's side and hugging her. "We're back together! You were right!"

Remus raised his eyebrows.

"You told her we'd be back together?" he asked. "I thought you were following strict, self-imposed rules not to reveal future events."

"Not in so many words," Morrighan assured him sheepishly. "But I did tell her that things would work out all right, and if that's how she took it than she's very good at reading between the lines, or she was just incredibly hopeful."

Remus sighed, sitting down beside Tonks and wrapping his arm around her affectionately, just as Sirius did the same thing to Morrighan on her other side.

"I just wish I knew nothing was going to happen to her because of me," Remus said softly, pressing his face against Tonks's neck. "I know you're not going to tell me, but it still makes me uneasy."

Morrighan bit her lip. Could she honestly say that Tonks's death wasn't because of Remus? She didn't go to the battle because of him, she disregarded his pleading and her responsibilities to her child and went into the battle because she was a Black, because she couldn't stand sitting safely while people she loved were in the thick of things.

Morrighan didn't blame her for it, certainly, but she thought hard and decided there wasn't really any blame for Remus, either.

"No," she said softly. "Nothing is going to happen to her because of you. Don't beat yourself up over your decision, Remus. It's the right one. When people who care about you and are generally right about things all say you ought to do something, it's probably a good idea to listen, after all."

He smiled a little, wrapping both arms around Tonks and hugging her tightly.

"Don't tell the others yet, but we've been talking about getting married," he whispered, looking so happy that he'd made the right choice.

"That's a great idea," Sirius said earnestly. "Big wedding, or something small?"

"Small," Tonks said quickly. "Small and quiet, just a few people. My parents, probably, and you guys. With the war and with Bellatrix out for me, it's probably best if we keep things as quiet as possible."

"I agree," Morrighan said with a sad smile. "It would still be wonderful, though."

"You could have it here," Sirius said with a smile. "That way the girls could be there. I know Andy would love to see the girls."

"Oh, Mum and Dad haven't shut up about it since I told them you procreated!" Tonks said with a laugh. "I'm not sure if they're happy or concerned! I know Mum can't wait to meet Morrighan, can't imagine why anyone as wonderful as I say she is would want anything to do with you."

"Well, he got me pregnant and there was no going back when I found out there were three of them," Morrighan teased, and Sirius spluttered indignantly. "I'm joking, darling," she said with a laugh, patting his head condescendingly and making him pout.

"Actually, I think having it here would be great, if that's all right with Morrighan," Remus said softly.

"I think it's a wonderful idea!" Morrighan said excitedly. "Two weddings this summer. Oh, Molly's going to be upset if she can't come to yours, but I suppose she'll understand with the war and all."

"I expect you're right," Tonks laughed. "Anyway, she'll be quite busy enough with Bill and Fleur. She's really pretty much planning the whole thing, you know, her and Fleur. And Fleur's a bit..."

"Demanding?" Morrighan offered with a smirk. "Yeah, but you know Molly. She'll rise to the occasion. It'll be a beautiful wedding."

She said nothing of the Death Eaters sort of crashing the reception, but the wedding itself would be beautiful.

Morrighan told Sirius to make tea and the four of them sat on the sofa, sipping their tea and cuddling with their significant other. Morrighan just basked in the way Sirius held her, feeling the relief of having told him many of the things that had been troubling her, although not all. He'd taken it surprisingly well, but he'd grown so much from the childlike-man getting drunk so that he could have an easier time talking to her. He was still himself, and still a bit like a child, but he'd matured immensely by necessity alone. She wondered if it would be enough in the year to come.

She then looked over at Remus and Tonks, so happy in their long overdue acceptance of their love. They would be married soon, and then she would be pregnant not long after. Not even a year later, they would be dead. Morrighan tried hard not to shiver, picturing their dead bodies side by side on the floor of the Great Hall in the midst of the dead, dying, and injured. They would be just two more casualties of war at that moment, but Morrighan would be crying for them all the way across the country.

"We should be leaving you two alone to sleep," Tonks said finally when all the tea was gone. "You've got Morrighan's health and the girls to take care of."

"That's the worst euphemism for you two wanting to shag each other's brains out that I've ever heard," Sirius teased, and the way both of them blushed made Morrighan and Sirius howl with laughter.

They said their goodbyes and Sirius hugged Morrighan a little bit tighter as they watched Remus and Tonks Disapparate outside the window.

Everything was about to change again.


	26. The Beginning of the End

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to my lovely reader and reviewer, **_**SiriusIsMyPuppy**_**. **_**SIMP**_** is a diligent reader of my works and their review encouraged me to actually START this chapter, which I've been sort of looking at and not wanting to do. Guess what? I did it. THANK YOU **_**SIMP**_**!**

** -J**

The funeral was nice enough, as far as funerals go. Morrighan held Sirius's hand and tried to remind herself that these people speaking, these people so obviously incapable of capturing Dumbledore's essence properly, hadn't read the books. In fact, she nearly made herself laugh at the thought, but she held it in. Even though Dumbledore probably would have appreciated her chuckle, she didn't think the people she was surrounded by would like it much.

"I'm going to go talk to a few people," she told Sirius when the service was over. "I'll come and find you when I'm done, all right?"

Sirius nodded, kissing her forehead and touching her baby bump lovingly before she walked away.

Morrighan couldn't help but smile to herself as she made her way up to where Harry was. He hadn't broken up with Ginny yet, and she could tell he was working up his resolve to do so.

"Hey, Harry," she said, trying to wipe away the smile that she was sure he would read as mocking him. "I guess I really don't have to ask how you're feeling. It's a tough day full of tough decisions."

He shook his head a little.

"How do you stand there and tell someone you can't be with them when you know that if things were even a little bit different...?"

She sighed.

"I'm not the person to answer that question, Harry," Morrighan said softly. "Until I came here, my love life was a certifiable mess. Just know that it's the right thing and it works out."

He smiled sadly.

"Yeah, I had a feeling you'd say something like that. How are you holding up?"

Morrighan smiled, knowing he wasn't really asking about her pregnancy.

"What, you mean other than being the size of a small planet? I'm all right. As well as can be, I suppose with all the questioning looks. I knew, they told me, so couldn't I have done something? But it's not that simple. You'll know, someday sooner than I'd like, why I couldn't do anything, and I hope you forgive me."

"Oh, I already forgive you," Harry said with a snarl. "It's Snape I'll never forgive."

Morrighan wanted so badly to tell him that he would regret those words someday, but he probably wouldn't remember them when that day came. He might remember the sentiment behind them, a sentiment he would cling to in the days to come almost as much as his determination to end Voldemort, but saying those words to her he probably would only vaguely recall if she brought it up first, and not at all if she didn't.

"Well, you've got a lot of people to talk to," she said happily. "We'll keep you updated on the plans to retrieve you this summer. Take care of yourself, Harry. You'll be on with your task soon enough."

He hugged her as well as he could with her size, and then Morrighan returned to Sirius, who was talking to Tonks about wedding plans.

"What have you been up to, darling?" he asked happily as she slipped her hands in his. "You've missed all the exciting planning!"

"I suppose I'll live," she laughed, rolling her eyes at Remus, trying to lighten the whole subject of marriage.

Because whatever Remus said, she knew he was still not entirely comfortable with his choice. When that baby came along...

Well, when the pregnancy happened, anyway. They had a bit of time before Remus started feeling guilty and panicked. Then Morrighan figured she would be talking some sense into him, since she hoped that Harry wouldn't have to be the one to guilt him into going back to Tonks.

She could have Sirius do that, and probably even more effectively. After all, Sirius was bound to know things about Remus that Harry couldn't ever dream of, growing up together and all. Morrighan decided there would be plenty of good things to come out of saving Sirius.

As soon as they got back to the manor, Sirius insisted that they spend the rest of the day playing with the girls.

"What are they going to play with in that place?" he asked bitterly. "I can't even put them in my old room. You know what was on the walls of that place. I don't want them in Regulus's old room, either."

"There were some nice enough guest rooms, love," Morrighan whispered, kissing Sirius's cheek.

Sirius groaned.

"What?"

"Their first birthday," he whined. "They're going to have their first birthday in that hell-hole."

"It's going to be fine," Morrighan assured him. "We'll brighten it up. We'll get Kreacher to "help, I promise. I'm going to devote myself to making that house wonderful, Sirius. You're going to be okay with living there, and the girls are going to love it. All right?"

"How are you going to get rid of my mother?" he asked bitterly.

"I don't know," Morrighan admitted. "But I promise, I'll think of something. I've got a few ideas already. Now, do you think we can get some sleep?"

"Yeah," he sighed. "I'll put the girls to bed. You go get some rest."

Morrighan went to bed that night thinking about the wedding she was going to have to help plan, the work she was going to have to do at Grimmauld Place, and the burdens she was going to have to shoulder as the one who knew what the future held. When Sirius climbed into bed beside her, wrapping his arms around her, nuzzling his face against her neck, Morrighan smiled to herself in the dark. She suddenly had an image of them making love and knew it was years into the figure. She could feel instinctively that they had more children, and that that moment, they were about to conceive another set of twins. She closed her eyes and remembered what Severus and Albus had said about her probably ability of Sight. All would be well, someday.

It wasn't too long after that night that Remus and Tonks were standing in Morrighan and Sirius's back yard. Ted and Andromeda Tonks were playing with the girls, who basically crawled all over them, and the ceremony itself took about five minutes. Rings were exchanged, vows were said, a kiss was shared, and then the whole group went inside for a 'reception'.

"So," Andromeda said happily to Morrighan, "you're this wonderful woman Tonks won't stop talking about, the marvel who's managed to tame my wild and unruly cousin."

"So they tell me," Morrighan said with a laugh. Sirius smiled, wrapping his arms around her as best he could and kissing the side of her head.

"She's the love of my life, Andy," Sirius said with a happy smile. "And those girls... Well, you've seen them. Two more on the way, too!"

"Dora's right!" Ted laughed. "Your womb must be incredibly fertile!"

As Morrighan blushed, Sirius bristled playfully.

"Why does everyone assume it's her womb that's super-fertile?" he pouted.

Andromeda gave him an indulgent smile and said, "Because the last set of multiples in the Black family was about ten generations ago. And before that you're looking at three hundred years for another. So, no, it's probably not you Sirius."

He continued to pout, but when he scooped up Kitty and Tiffany, he couldn't hold his pout for much longer. Kitty started curling her fingers in his hair and he started smiling flat-out, and Ted Tonks was giving him a knowing look. He turned to Morrighan and said, "He's a sucker for them, isn't he?"

"Completely," she said conspiratorially. "With Kitty especially. I don't know what it was, but the second he picked up Kitty for the first time, it was like she stole his heart more than anybody else could ever hope to. I mean, she looks just like the other two, but he just does anything for her."

"That's going to be difficult when she gets older," Ted sighed. "But at least you know he'll never hurt them. The scariest thing about being with Andromeda was wondering what sort of parent she would be when we got pregnant with Dora. You just can't say, and her family wasn't a shining example of quality parenthood."

Morrighan nodded. That had, of course, worried her about Sirius, but she knew how he was with Harry, even with his inability to separate Harry from James. The second Sirius had rushed to hold her as she rubbed her stomach in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, she had known he was going to rise to the challenge of fatherhood.

"We've had our own special difficulties, obviously," she sighed. "But he's done a wonderful job. Probably almost too good of a job, sometimes."

Ted gave another knowing chuckle and nodded. Andromeda, who had taken Tiffany on her lap, was having her own hair pulled when she said, "Well, I certainly hope you'll be bringing around a little one or two soon, Nymphadora."

Remus shifted uncomfortably, but nobody seemed to notice except for Morrighan, who exchanged a look with him.

"I think I'm going to get some tea," she said, getting up. "Remus, could you help me?"

"I'll help you, love," Sirius said, making to stand, but Morrighan shook her head.

"Stay here," she said with a smile. "Play with your daughter. Catch up with your cousin."

He couldn't argue too much, so he sat back, rubbing his nose with Kitty's, and she giggled as Remus got up to follow Morrighan into the kitchen. She turned to look at him as he set himself about making some tea.

"Remus, talk," she sighed. "I know what's bothering you."

"You can't tell me anything, remember?" he said sharply. "You can't tell me anything about how my future might turn out or it might change things. Honestly, Morrighan, I'm not sure I want to know. I don't regret marrying Dora, but the idea of children... Well, we'll have to be careful, that's all."

"Remus," she sighed softly, "I hope you know that you've not done anything wrong. Marrying her wasn't a mistake."

"Even if it was," he said with a bit of a hollow laugh, "I'd never take it back. I love her. The least I can do is make sure she knows it after what I've put her through. I wish I could do it without tying her to me so permanently, but there you have it. I'm selfish, Morrighan. I'm terrified of losing her. That's why I married her. I didn't want to lay awake at night wondering when Bellatrix was going to track her down, knowing I'd be too late to save her no matter what."

Morrighan frowned.

"You married her because you didn't want to wonder whether or not she was dead?"

Remus nodded, blushing sheepishly.

"I know it's selfish," he sighed. "And absurd. But no matter what I try to do, I'm in love with her and I suppose we're allowed a little bit of selfishness when we're in love, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. Which is why I have to be careful not to get her pregnant. I'd never forgive myself."

Morrighan couldn't believe it. She had always assumed that Remus married Tonks because he realized he couldn't be without her, not because he didn't want to wonder about her death all the time. Maybe it was more or less the same thing, but Morrighan was having a hard time seeing it that way as Remus made his way back out to the others.

The thought occurred to her, though, that Sirius may have married her for similar reasons. It wasn't that he didn't love her and certainly had nothing to do with trepidation for fatherhood, because he certainly hadn't had enough of that at the time, but maybe there was a part of love that thought in terms of loss just as strongly as gain.

Morrighan spent the short time after the wedding, before they were scheduled to retrieve Harry from the Dursleys, to go over safety and protective measures with Mad-Eye Moody. It made her sick to her stomach, knowing she would be hearing of his death, as well, entirely too soon. It seemed as though everyone was dying lately and Morrighan felt terribly helpless about it all.

"We've got all of the arrangements," Mad-Eye told her, looking around the house with his magical eye. "You're as safe as anyone can expect."

"Excellent," Morrighan sighed. "And we'll be expecting...?"

"Remus and George," Mad-Eye said as though it didn't really matter who they would be receiving.

At the realization of what she would have to deal with, Morrighan felt sick to her stomach. George, the lost ear... the Portkey they would have to catch... What if they showed up early? How could she handle that for too long? She wasn't very good with blood, much less massive amounts of and missing chunks of skin.

"Right," she finally forced herself to say. "Right."

Sirius noticed Morrighan was out of sorts after Mad-Eye left and he asked her what was wrong.

"I don't do well with blood," she said softly.

"Are you hurt?" he said anxiously. "Where's the blood? Is it one of the girls?"

"No," she said, almost laughing as he frantically began checking her for cuts and scrapes. "No, the girls are fine. I'm fine. No blood yet. But there will, be, and I think that's something you ought to know. It's fine when it's my own blood. That doesn't bother me at all, but somebody else's... If they're still alive..."

Sirius raised an eyebrow.

"So if you see a rotting, mangled corpse covered in blood you'd be fine but if I got a cut on my finger that was bleeding you'd freak out?"

"Pretty much," Morrighan chuckled, still feeling sick to her stomach at the thought of the gaping hole where George's ear was at that moment. "Pathetic, right? Mental."

"No, not exactly," Sirius said kindly, kissing her nose. "Just a bit strange, but you're never very typical, are you, darling?"

Morrighan chuckled a bit, trying not to think about the blood and the wound anymore.

Then she recalled that Snape would be blamed for it. In a way, it would help his cover, but she would feel terrible, listening to people speak out even more viciously against her friend. She would not get to see him again before he died. She knew it instinctively, as she had known about her future children. Severus was without her completely. She wished there were some way to see him just one more time, but she didn't know how to contact him without drawing attention, without putting him in danger. She couldn't afford to jeopardize everything just for her own selfishness.

The night of the retrieval, just a few days before Harry's birthday, Morrighan sat in wait in the drawing room while Sirius paced.

"Remus doesn't die, right?" Sirius snapped at one point. "I mean, he's fine, right? I mean, he just got married! Tonks doesn't die either, right?"

"Sirius, sit down," Morrighan sighed. "You're making me dizzy."

"Sorry, love," he muttered, not sitting down, but ceasing his pacing as he went to the window, drumming his fingers impatiently on the sill.

Remus was his last surviving childhood friend, Morrighan knew. It was understandable that he was worried. And Tonks was one of his two relatives that he could stand. She couldn't tell him about their deaths, couldn't do anything except try to comfort him when that day came.

Minutes later, Sirius yelped with surprise, rushing out to the lawn, alerting Morrighan that Remus and George had arrived. She braced herself, knowing exactly what was about to come, with George's ear. She wasn't going to freak out. She wouldn't worry him that way.

But as soon as Remus and Sirius got the faint and bleeding George into her line of vision, Morrighan felt woozy and nauseous.

She wasn't going to puke. She wasn't. There was no way Morrighan was going to puke.

The second they lowered him onto the couch, Morrighan turned over the arm of her chair and vomited on the carpet, groaning as she buried her face in her shaking hands.

"Sorry," she moaned, feeling terrible. The last thing they needed was to deal with her inability to stomach gore when they had to keep George from bleeding out before his portkey was ready to take him to his mother, but Sirius was good about it.

"It's all right, love, I've got it," he said quickly, cleaning up her sick before getting the portkey for them, telling Remus to come back when he could and give them a full report, and watching the pair disappear.

"They're gone," Sirius said comfortingly, getting onto the floor at her feet, looking up at her, checking to see if she was all right.

Morrighan still felt a bit clammy, but she nodded to show him that she was recovering.

"I'm so sorry," she sighed. "I was absolutely no help at all."

"Don't worry about it," he muttered, kissing her hands gently. She realized then that his own hands were shaking nearly as much as hers. He took a shaky breath and said, "He's okay, isn't he? George, I mean. He doesn't die tonight or anything?"

"No," Morrighan assured him, glad she could give one piece of comfort, one bit of help. "No, he can't get his ear back. It was cursed off. But he doesn't die. He'll be in fine form again in plenty of time for the wedding and Molly won't even know what to do with herself."

"I guess we'll be able to tell them apart now," Sirius said with a heavy laugh, kissing Morrighan's hands again in an attempt to hide the tears of relief that slid down his face, but although she felt them fall onto her skin, Morrighan pretended they didn't exist.

One more bit of help, she told herself.


	27. To Have And To Hold

Remus found them curled up on the couch, Sirius's head resting on Morrighan's massive belly and Morrighan petting his raven hair even as Sirius was caressing her stomach.

Sirius looked up at Remus when he walked in, but Morrighan was afraid to. She didn't want to deal with the questions that were sure to come.

"George is fine," Remus sighed. "The ear can't be put back. Snape cursed it off-"

"Snape?" Sirius barked, sitting up right away, looking at Morrighan for an explanation.

"Sirius," she said pleadingly, and for a moment she thought he was going to demand an explanation, but he looked back down at her stomach before nodding and laying back on it again.

"Is everyone else all right?" Sirius asked softly.

"No," Remus sighed, falling into a nearby chair. "Harry's fine. Most everybody else is fine, but Mad-Eye... Mad-Eye didn't make it."

Sirius just blinked at first, as though trying to understand what he'd just heard. Then he sat up again, frowning.

"Mad-Eye's gone?"

Remus nodded sadly.

"We couldn't find the body. I don't even want to think about what they've done to him."

"Who was it?" Sirius demanded. "What happened?"

"Voldemort," Morrighan whispered, and both men looked at her, waiting. She swallowed and said, "Voldemort showed up, wanting to end things with Harry today, but he didn't know which was which. They assumed he'd be with Mad-Eye so he went straight for them, but Mundungus panicked, Disapparated... If he hadn't, he'd be the dead one."

"He _should_ be the dead one," Sirius snarled.

"Harry very nearly got himself killed," Remus sighed. "I wish you'd talk to him, Morrighan. He's very hesitant to attack properly, despite the fact that his life is on the line." Sirius gave him a questioning look and Remus explained how Harry was trying to disarm instead of kill, which led Voldemort straight to him.

Sirius sighed heavily, wrapping his arms around Morrighan.

"He's growing up faster than he should, but I suppose he rather has to," Sirius sighed. "I hope this is all over soon. I don't want my girls to grow up in this too. It was bad enough we had to and Harry had to and..." He sighed again. "I'm sorry, Remus, we've not been the best of hosts tonight."

"I understand," Remus said, waving him off. "I should be getting back to Tonks, anyway. Are you going to the wedding?"

Morrighan hesitated, biting her lip. They'd received their invitations to the wedding, of course... But she knew how the wedding ended and she was so very pregnant... Surely the Weasleys would understand her not going? And the possibility of something happening to Sirius, of him doing something stupid...

But there was no good reason to keep Sirius from going, so how could she let him go alone? Remus wouldn't be able to keep him in line half as well as her, and she couldn't even keep him in line as well without the constant reminder of her incredibly pregnant womb.

"We hadn't really discussed it," Sirius began slowly, watching her as her mind worked, but Morrighan cut across him.

"We're going to go," she said eagerly, "but I think we're going to make sure the girls are safe somewhere else. You never can be too careful."

"But, love," Sirius said softly, "what about the pregnancy."

She smiled softly, kissing his fingertips, noticing the way Remus twitched uncomfortably.

Ah, so he already knew about Tonks's pregnancy. That was interesting.

"It's going to be fine, love," she whispered. "But let's not discuss this while we have a guest."

"Right," Sirius sighed. "Sorry, Remus. She keeps me polite."

"Hedwig died too," Morrighan said suddenly, just realizing that nobody had mentioned the death of Harry's animal companion.

"Harry's owl?" Sirius said sadly. "Oh, no. In the battle?"

"Yeah," Morrighan whispered. "She... she was trying to protect him and... she died."

The three adults sat in silence for several minutes, more out of not knowing what to say than out of respect for the bird, although they did respect Hedwig's sacrifice, very much so. Finally, Sirius whispered, "Should we get him another owl?"

Morrighan hesitated, nibbling on her lip. Obviously, Harry wouldn't be in a position where he could take an owl with him for quite some time anyway. He would need time to get over the loss of Hedwig, anyway, before he had a new familiar.

"I suppose," she said softly, "we could get an owl, keep it until Harry's ready, and then give it to him as a gift. He won't be able to do anything with an owl for a while and he needs to get over the loss, but I think if we let him name our owl and wait until he feels ready we can either give him that one or buy him his own..."

"That's brilliant," Sirius gushed, kissing Morrighan's lips lightly, quickly. "You're brilliant. I don't know what I'd do without her, Moony. Morrighan comes up with all of the best ideas." He smiled up at her and said again, "You come up with all of the best ideas, darling."

"Yes, I seem to recall you saying that before," she laughed. "Do you think you could pick up another owl tomorrow, for Harry?"

"Yes," he said eagerly, kissing her hand that she'd tried to lift to pet his hair again. "Anything. What sort of owl would you like, love?"

Morrighan shrugged, lifting her other hand to caress Sirius's hair.

"I'm not exactly an authority on owls, Sirius," she sighed. "Not another like Hedwig. Something pretty, not plain looking, though."

"Tawny," Remus sighed. "Get a tawny owl. That's what James had. I think Harry would appreciate that."

The three of them smiled sadly.

"Brilliant," Sirius sighed again. "You two are both brilliant. I should just keep you in a room and ask you to solve all my problems." He paused for a moment, then said quickly, "With the ability to take Morrighan into another room every now and again for help with other things..."

Morrighan snorted, smacking Sirius playfully, but Remus took his leave and said goodnight.

Sirius and Morrighan had Winky look after the girls, telling them that she was not to let anyone enter the house except for the pair of them, no matter the circumstances. If it was looking as though she couldn't maintain that order, Morrighan qualified, she was to take the girls to Grimmauld Place, where she would keep them in the kitchen until Sirius and Morrighan arrived and she was not to consider herself as having failed in the order. Winky said she understood and Morrighan and Sirius readied themselves for the wedding.

Morrighan had a loose, blue dress Sirius had gotten her that didn't hide her bump but did flatter it. Sirius pulled on dark silver dress robes Morrighan had selected from his closet, and he combed her hair for her, kissing her neck every so often as he did so, as she did her makeup. As soon as they were ready. Morrighan took Sirius's hand in her shaky one and he Disapparated them, taking them to the meeting point for the wedding.

"Oh, Morrighan! Sirius!" Arthur cried, looking quite a bit flustered. "I wasn't sure you'd be coming!"

"We couldn't miss this," Morrighan said eagerly. "Besides, there's limited opportunities to see Harry, what with..."

"Yes, I know something about that," Arthur said quickly as a pair who could only be the Lovegoods arrived just behind Sirius and Morrighan. "I understand." He turned to the new arrivals and said, "Xeno! Luna! So glad you both could make it. I don't believe you've met Sirius and Morrighan Black?"

"No, but we're delighted," Luna said sweetly, taking Morrighan's hand as it was offered. "You're quite pregnant," the girl said bluntly. "How far along?"

"Quite far alone," Morrighan laughed. "I'm expecting them sometime next month, but they really could pop out at any time now."

"Oh, twins?" Luna said happily. "Twins are extraordinary good luck, you know!"

"I knew it," Sirius said with a grin, shaking Luna's hand eagerly. "I knew my little girls would be good luck!"

"You knew no such thing," Morrighan teased. "Come on, now, we have people to go meet."

"Right this way!" Arthur said happily, leading them off toward the marquee in the back yard. Morrighan held Sirius's hand tightly, knowing that they would have plenty of time to enjoy the wedding but feeling of anxiety wouldn't leave her chest. Sirius squeezed her hand comfortingly, but it didn't do much good.

'Barney', who was actually Harry, showed them to their seat and Morrighan said, "We've gotten an owl. We're not sure what to name it. Any ideas?"

Harry frowned slightly.

"He's a tawny owl," Sirius said quickly. "Looks almost exactly like the one James had back in school."

"Prongs," Harry said softly, almost sadly, and then he walked back to the back of the marquee to help others to their seats.

"Prongs?" Sirius asked, frowning. "For an owl?"

"I think it's lovely," Morrighan muttered, leaning her head on Sirius's shoulder.

"He seemed upset," Sirius whispered.

"He just lost Hedwig," Morrighan reminded him. "Give him time. He's got a lot on his mind tonight, you know."

Sirius blinked.

"Did you send him our birthday gift for him?" he hissed, realizing he'd forgotten all about it, probably.

"Yes, dear," Morrighan sighed. "Oh, look, it's Remus and Tonks!"

Fred led the newlyweds to their seats over by Morrighan and Tonks and Morrighan awkwardly hugged Tonks without getting up, kissing her cheek.

"I have news to tell you later," Tonks whispered. "Don't let me forget."

"I already know," Morrighan sighed, chuckling. "Congratulations."

"Right, I forgot," Tonks giggled. "So, can you tell Remus to stop worrying?"

"I suppose I could, but give it a week or so before I do," Morrighan whispered. "I'll set him straight. How do you feel?"

"Nauseous," Tonks admitted, a bit louder than they'd been talking.

"If you're sick, stay away from Morrighan," Sirius said as friendly as a person could manage to say a thing like that. "I don't want her getting sick this far along. It could hurt the babies."

Morrighan and Tonks both giggled and Remus stiffened. Sirius frowned.

"What?" he asked.

"Let's just say that what I've got Morrighan won't be able to catch," Tonks said with a wink at Morrighan.

"Yeah, I've already had it," Morrighan said with a smirk.

Sirius still didn't get it, looking from Tonks to his wife and trying to figure out what was going on. Eventually, though, he just shook his head, befuddled, and said, "Well, that's good then, I suppose. Hope you feel better soon, Tonks. Do you think it's a good idea to come to a wedding, though? I mean, there's probably people who haven't had it here."

Even Remus snorted at that, but it could barely be heard over Morrighan and Tonks's laughs.

"I'm Healer approved, Sirius, I assure you," Tonks finally managed to choke out, and Sirius was pouting long after that conversation ended. Morrighan knew he felt like they were laughing at him, and perhaps they were in a way, but she was sure that he would laugh at himself as soon as he knew the fact that Tonks was pregnant.

To soothe him as best she could, Morrighan slipped her hand into Sirius's, raising his hand to kiss his knuckles lovingly. Sirius tried to contain his smile, to maintain his pout, but he couldn't. It made her a bit giddy, exercising that sort of effect over him, but nothing could compare to the feeling of him pressing his lips to the spot just below her jaw in response.

He was just too good for his own good, but Morrighan could hardly mind. They only had so many moments they could truly savor before the world they were tentatively clinging to fell all around them once more. He knew, of course, but there was a difference between knowing and experiencing, as Morrighan had so uncomfortably found out for herself.

The wedding was beautiful, just as Morrighan had imagined as she'd read about it. It wasn't a surprise, Fleur and Bill being so incredibly good-looking and magic making everything else so impossibly beautiful. Of course, Morrighan considered that perhaps everything seemed so beautiful because she knew how tragically it was going to be ripped apart later that night.

"I have to say," Sirius whispered as everyone was cheering for the couple being bonded for life, "I beat out Bill big time."

"How so?" Morrighan asked, clapping frantically.

"My wife is _way_ sexier," Sirius purred, and Morrighan couldn't help but giggle.

She pulled Sirius forward to congratulate the married couple, not listening as he whined about how long the line was and ignoring him when he got handsy, purring in her ear about how badly he wanted to get her on the dance floor. She rolled her eyes, trying to figure out how he expected to be naughty on the dance floor with her massive pregnant stomach, but he was, after all, Sirius Black. He didn't know the meaning of obstacles.

"Bill," she said, finally hugging the new couple. "Fleur! Congratulations!"

"Any advice?" Bill asked with a wink.

"Don't have triplets," Morrighan said with a laugh. "They're lovely, but I don't want to do it again."

"Damn," Sirius muttered, and the four of us laughed.

"Well," Morrighan said after a moment, "we won't keep you, but we just wanted to come up and give you our best wishes."

"Yeah," Sirius said, shaking Bill's hand as Morrighan and Fleur kissed each other's cheeks in the French way. "Good luck. I hope you two are as happy as we are."

Morrighan couldn't help grinning as Sirius led her out to the dance floor which was as awkward with her belly as Morrighan had assumed it would be. Still, the way he looked at her made it a bit less uncomfortable as his gray eyes were alight with desire and love.

"I wish we could say goodbye," Sirius said softly at one point, looking over to where Harry was sitting with Elphias Doge. "We don't know when we're going to see him again."

Morrighan bit her lip. She knew they'd see him again soon, probably later that night, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything. He would just be pleasantly surprised later. Besides, there were too many people around to properly explain anything.

She tried to enjoy herself but was finding it harder almost every moment. When she saw Muriel, that disgusting cow of a woman, sit down with Harry and Elphias, it became especially tense because she knew that any moment the lynx Patronus from Kingsley would arrive and panic would ensue. Sirius could tell she was becoming distracted and he was giving up trying to keep her attention and merely tried to comfort her, leading her over toward where Remus and Tonks were standing, talking.

"Have you had the little sandwiches?" Tonks asked, grinning. "They're so posh!"

The words had barely gotten out of her mouth when the lynx appeared and Morrighan gripped Sirius's hand tightly as the message was delivered, as the wedding party was learning that the Ministry had fallen.

"Get out of here, now," Sirius hissed in Morrighan's ear as the panic began spreading outward and people were searching for loved ones.

"I'm not leaving without you," Morrighan insisted stubbornly, hoping it would work, hoping that she wouldn't have to face Death Eaters, no matter how far from the inner circle they were.

Sirius seemed to be struggling with what to do as Death Eaters began arriving, signaling that the security measures surrounding the Burrow were down. Morrighan could hardly make any of them out, certainly wouldn't have recognized most of them even if she could, but Sirius wrapped his arm around her, yelled for her to hold onto him, and she gripped him as tightly as she could as he Disapparated, leaving the chaos behind as they landed on the top step of Grimmauld place, rushing inside quickly as possible.

Mad-Eye had put the security measures in place at Dumbledore's death just as he'd done in the books, at Morrighan's insistence. She wasn't sure if not having them would change too much, but she didn't want to take chances.

Sirius took care of it as Morrighan caught her breath and then he went to find Winky and check on the girls as Morrighan stumbled into the next room. She wasn't sure when Harry would arrive, exactly, but she didn't think it would be too long. When Sirius joined her again he looked very relieved.

"Who did you see?" she asked softly. "You changed your mind when you looked at the Death Eaters. Who did you see?"

Sirius swallowed heavily, helping Morrighan to sit down on a sofa and saying, "My cousin."

Morrighan frowned.

"Bellatrix? They actually sent Bellatrix to crash the wedding? Isn't that a bit of overkill?"

"She probably assumed I would be there, that you would be there," he whispered, pressing his lips to her forehead. "She'd love to kill you and our daughters maybe even more than she wants me dead. I could... I can't let her near you. I don't want to take that risk, love. I can't."

"It's all right," Morrighan soothed. "Nothing's going to happen, to either of us. I promise you, Sirius. Our family is going to be safe."

"Safe," he sighed. "Yes. Safe."

The look he gave her in that moment was nervous and she thought he was thinking about the twins. She had just thought herself about what they would do, how they would manage to deliver the twins in Grimmauld Place, because it wouldn't be safe to go to the hospital and they couldn't ask Molly to come to them.

He, however, had heard something and he'd tensed.

"There's someone at in the hall," he whispered. "I'm going to go check it out. Don't move. If something happens, get the girls and run... Go anywhere you think you might be safe."

Holding her breath, Morrighan watched Sirius walk upstairs, hoping it was who she thought it was but not counting on anything.


	28. It Had to Be So

**A/N: This is dedicated to my ever-faithful reader, **_**SiriusIsMyPuppy**_**! **_**SIMP's**_** review got this chapter on its feet! Cheers!**

** -J**

It was Harry, Ron, and Hermione, which let Sirius and Morrighan relax a bit. They congregated in the kitchen and Harry, Ron, and Hermione told their story about what happened at Tottenham Court Road.

"How did they know where to look for us?" Hermione asked Morrighan. "Was it something to do with the Trace?"

"No," she said quickly. "No. It's... Well, I guess I can tell you. There's a Taboo on You-Know-Who's name. They can track anyone who says it."

"Good to know," Sirius said with a low whistle. "So what's the plan now?"

"We... we should stay here until we figure out where to look for our first Horcrux," Harry said uncertainly, looking to Morrighan for some sort of sign that he was doing the right thing. Morrighan sighed, trying to think of the best way to move forward.

"Harry," she said softly, "I know where the first one is, or at least, I think I do. We'll have to talk to Kreacher to be sure."

"Kreacher?" the others chorused, confused.

"R.A.B.," Morrighan said calmly.

Sirius frowned.

"What about him?" he said.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione all jumped, looking at Sirius like they'd never seen him before.

"Wait, you know him?" Harry demanded.

"I mean, I think so," Sirius said, turning to Morrighan. "He's who I think he is, isn't he?"

Morrighan nodded and the trio looked at them expectantly. Sirius finally sighed again.

"Regulus Arcturus Black," he said, running his shaking fingers through his hair. "My brother. What about him?"

"He didn't get killed for nothing," Morrighan said softly. "We need to talk to Kreacher, find out what happened to the Horcrux Regulus told him to destroy."

"Regulus was the one who found them?" Sirius said, stunned. "That's why he died?"

Morrighan nodded, slipping her hand into his as she called for Kreacher, who seemed unhappy about having to come when she called, despite the fact that she was his Mistress now that she'd married Sirius.

"Mistress called?" Kreacher said with a low bow, already muttering something at his toes when she began to speak to him.

"Kreacher, I'd like to ask you about Regulus's locket," she said gently. "The one he asked you to destroy."

He seemed taken aback when she said this, but he answered all of her questions so that she could give backstory to the others and gain Kreacher's trust. Somehow, by the time the story was done Morrighan and Kreacher were best friends and the rest of the room was completely aghast.

"Kreacher," Morrighan said softly, "I need to know where that locket is now, the one you saved from being thrown out while we were cleaning two years ago. We want to help you destroy it for Regulus."

Kreacher looked completely ashamed of himself.

"Mundungus Fletcher," he croaked. "He stole many things. He took the locket. I tried to stop him, Mistress, but-"

"You've done very well, Kreacher, I know where it is," she assured him. "Thank you. Do you like children, Kreacher?"

"Morrighan," Sirius said in an uneasy voice.

"Children of the House of Black, Mistress?" Kreacher crooned. "Of course, Mistress!"

"Very good," Morrighan sighed. "Well, we already have three that I ask you to help us take care of, and as you could probably tell, Kreacher, we've got another two on their way. Would you be willing to help out with them all, if that's all right?"

"Kreacher would be honored, Mistress," Kreacher said eagerly, much to the surprise of everyone in the room but Morrighan.

He busied himself in that moment with making tea for them all as Morrighan explained how the locket had gone from Kreacher's possession to Mundungus's stash to the neck of one Dolores Umbridge, the woman who'd been making lives miserable pretty much since she was born, Morrighan was sure. Even a mother couldn't love that toady face.

"So it's... it's at the Ministry," Harry said, still trying to wrap his brain around it. "We're going to have to break into the Ministry."

"Yeah," Morrighan sighed. "Yeah, you are. We're going to have to plan, but there's only so much help I can give, you understand."

"Of course," Harry agreed eagerly. "Of course. I'm glad you guys got out okay. Is everyone else...?"

"They're fine," Morrighan assured Harry. "They're absolutely fine. Don't try to get in touch with them, though, because everyone associated with the Order is being watched."

"I bet Bellatrix is going mad trying to figure out how to get to me," Sirius growled. "And you."

Morrighan frowned. She didn't want Sirius to worry about her so much, but she supposed that if his worry kept him at her side she could deal with it.

"Well, we'll have time to work on your plans in the morning," Morrighan sighed, not wanting to continue talking about Sirius's paranoia. "Plenty of time."

"No there's not," Harry insisted.

"Harry, I already told you three days early," Morrighan said with her eyebrows raised. "Now, you've had a night full of excitement and any minute it's going to hit you how tired you are. I want you three to march right up to bed! Harry, why don't you take Sirius's old room? You ought to have your own beds. Trust me, you'll miss the privacy none too soon."

The three of them muttered their thanks and hurried off to bed.

Morrighan sighed, trying not to notice Sirius's expectant look as she finished up her tea.

"Why did you put Harry in that room?" he asked finally. "I don't have a problem with it, exactly, it's just the same as I left it as a teenager and-"

"I know about the scantily clad Muggle women on motorbikes, darling," Morrighan said dryly. "There's part of a letter Lily wrote you there, and he needs to read it. For a few different reasons. Can we go to bed?"

"Not to sleep?" he said, wagging his eyebrows suggestively. Morrighan rolled her eyes and snorted, letting him lead her up to the room they'd shared while they were alone in Grimmauld Place together.

Two nights later, they'd gotten fairly well into their planning, although Morrighan had refused to let them monitor the Ministry.

"Tomorrow," she sighed as Sirius rubbed her back lovingly. "You can start tomorrow."

Hermione and Sirius had just put the girls down to sleep, although Kreacher didn't want to share his responsibilities with Hermione, not because of her blood status (after all, his new Mistress was a Mudblood), but because she wasn't family.

They heard the front door open and Sirius froze, pulling out his wand and getting between Morrighan and the door of the kitchen.

"Sirius, it's all right," Morrighan whispered.

"You don't know that," he said, voice full of anxiety. "Things change, Morrighan, you've said it yourself. We don't know anything for certain."

"Sirius please," she began softly, knowing that Sirius was a bit too jumpy to not necessarily curse Remus first and ask question later.

"Morrighan, if that's my cousin up there," he began, and she could hear more fear in his voice than she could have imagined possible.

"I'm not Bellatrix, Padfoot," said a very familiar voice as Remus stepped down from the staircase and Morrighan got up quickly, ready to hug him. Sirius, however, grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Prove it," Sirius snarled, not lowering his wand. "I'm not taking any chances with my wife!"

Remus remained calm, hands up to prove himself unarmed.

"Remus John Lupin," Remus said softly. "Werewolf you all know was Moony, one of the Marauders, married to Nymphadora Tonks, and Morrighan Capilla isn't from our reality."

Sirius was still breathing heavily, still holding up his wand, but he loosened his grip on Morrighan's arm, letting her rush forward finally and hug Remus.

"I've missed you, Remus," Morrighan sighed.

"You're hiding because of the wedding?" he sighed. "Because Bellatrix was there?"

"Yes," Morrighan said slowly, not wanting to give away her full hand. She pulled out of the hug and smiled at Remus. "Come on, have some tea. You can report back to everyone that we're okay when you're done."

"You know there are a couple of Death Eaters on the square outside," Remus said slowly.

"I know," Morrighan sighed, ignoring Sirius's scandalized look, obviously because she'd kept it from him.

"Well, I don't suppose they know you're in here, or there would be more of them," Remus sighed. "They've got people everywhere that has a connection to Harry, including the Manor."

"I figured as much," Morrighan sighed.

"I would have been here sooner, but I had to shake a tail," Remus said as Morrighan poured him some tea. "Did you all come here right after the wedding?"

"No," Harry said. "We ran into some Death Eaters in a cafe on Tottenham Court Road."

Remus nearly spilled his tea.

"_What?_"

Morrighan and the trio set about explaining what happened at the cafe.

"But how did they find you so quickly?" Remus declared.

"Ah, yes, that," Morrighan sighed. "It's a Taboo. On You-Know-Who's name. I would start alerting the Order right away. It's going to take some people time to break the habit. Tell us what happened to the guests after we left, please."

"Well, Kingsley saved us," Remus said. "Thanks to his warning most of the wedding guests were able to Disapparate before they arrived. There were about a dozen of them, but they didn't know you were there, Harry. Arthur heard a rumor that they tried to torture your whereabouts out of Scrimgeour before they killed him; if it's true, he didn't give you away."

There were surprised gasps all around Morrighan. She just shrugged.

"I don't know if it's true," she admitted, "but I think it probably is."

Remus went on to explain how the Death Eaters had interrogated the Weasleys, found the ghoul, and simultaneously were ransacking every Order-related home in the country. They burned down Dedalus's home, tortured the Tonkses, although so far everyone was fine.

"Bellatrix must have wanted you two badly," Remus mused, "if she went for the wedding rather than her sister."

"Yes," Sirius muttered darkly. "She must have."

Remus showed them the headline that Harry was wanted for questioning and had to listen to Sirius's outraged rants about what bumbling idiots the Ministry were, until Morrighan calmly reminded him that the Ministry and the Death Eaters were now the same person. Remus and Morrighan explained how Pius Thicknesse, the Imperiused politician, was the new Minister, how they went about making the smooth change in policy, and the moves against Muggle-borns in the Muggle-born Registration Committee.

"I assume that's what you wanted to come here instead of go to the Manor?" Remus asked Morrighan and Sirius.

"Yes," Sirius said, kissing Morrighan's forehead. "She told me about the Registration. There was no way we were going to go through that. I'm not giving them a chance to get at my wife. They're not going to find her here."

"Right, and Hermione's going to be with Ron and Harry," Morrighan said with a kind smile to the bushy-haired girl. "So she's not going to have to worry about that exactly. I mean, it certainly won't top the list of her concerns to be thinking of."

"Good point," Hermione said with a sigh. "What's going to happen with Hogwarts?"

Remus explained all of the changes at Hogwarts, except for the new headmaster, as that hadn't been announced yet, and Morrighan kept her mouth shut. Then Remus frowned.

"I'll understand if you can't confirm this, Harry, but the Order is under the impression that Dumbledore left you a mission."

"He did," Harry said with a nod, "and Ron and Hermione are in on it and they're coming with me."

"Can you confide in me what the mission is?"

Harry looked long and hard at Remus, and for a moment he looked as though he might say, but he turned and looked at Morrighan, who shook her head slightly at him.

"I can't, Remus, I'm sorry. If Dumbledore didn't tell you I don't think I can."

"I thought you'd say that," Remus said slowly, a bit disappointed. "But I might still be of some use to you. You know what I am and what I can do. I could come with you to provide protection. There would be no need to tell me exactly what you were up to."

Harry was hesitating, trying to decide if this was a good idea or not. Obviously it was a tempting one because he couldn't seem to make up his mind.

"And what about my cousin?" Sirius snapped, not liking what he was hearing, which was exactly what Morrighan had hoped for.

"What about her?" Remus said, although he was already starting to color slightly under the pressure of Sirius's distaste at his decision.

"You're married to her, Remus," Morrighan said smoothly, raising her eyebrows. "Sure, Sirius is able-bodied and capable of fighting with them, but I don't want him leaving my side. Even if I felt okay with it, I don't think he'd be too fond of the idea of leaving me and the girls, and he shouldn't."

"Tonks will be perfectly safe," Remus argued. "She'll be at her parents' house."

There was confusion thick in the air, and the detached way he was talking about his wife was obviously causing Sirius's blood to boil.

"Remus," Hermione said softly, hesitantly, "is everything all right... you know... between you and-"

"Everything is fine, thank you," Remus snapped. Hermione pinked with embarrassment and perhaps a bit of anger at being addressed in such a way, but after a pause in which Morrighan raised her eyebrows expectantly at him, Remus sighed and admitted the truth. "Tonks is going to have a baby."

"Brilliant!" Sirius roared excitedly.

"Yes," Morrighan said softly, only letting herself smile slightly as the trio voiced their congratulations.

Remus grimaced a fake smile and said, "So... do you accept my offer? Will three become four? I cannot believe that Dumbledore would have disapproved, he appointed me your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, after all. And I must tell you that I believe that we are facing magic many of us have never encountered or imagined."

Ron and Harry looked at Hermione and Morrighan watched Sirius grow more and more agitated by the second.

"Just - just to be clear," Harry said slowly. "You want to leave Tonks at her parents' house and come away with us?"

"She'll be perfectly safe there, they'll look after her," said Remus firmly, not seeming to care about the fact that her parents had actually been tortured just a few days ago. "Harry, I'm sure James would have wanted me to stick with you."

"You know that's not true," Sirius spat. "You know the way James stuck to Lily's side the moment they found out she was pregnant with Harry. You know he'd never understand you leaving a pregnant wife alone!"

"Sirius," Remus said pleadingly, "please, it's not the same."

"And how's that?" Morrighan prompted, sitting back, looking at him coolly, not impressed at all with what she knew he was going to say.

"I - I made a grave mistake in marrying Tonks. I did it against my better judgment and I have regretted it very much ever since."

"I see," Harry snapped, "so you're just going to dump her and the kid and run off with us?"

Remus was on his feet in such a flash that his chair toppled backward and Morrighan thought for a fraction of a second that he was going to actually lunge out and attack Harry.

"Don't you understand what I've done to my wife and my unborn child? I should never have married her, I've made her an outcast! You have only ever seen me amongst the Order, or under Dumbledore's protection at Hogwarts! You don't know how most of the Wizarding world sees creatures like me! When they know of my affliction, they can barely talk to me! Don't you see what I've done? Even her own family is disgusted by our marriage, what parents want their only daughter to marry a werewolf? And the child - the child - My kind don't usually breed! It will be like me, I am convinced of it - how can I forgive myself, when I knowingly risked passing on my own condition to an innocent child? And if, by some miracle, it is not like me, then it will be better off, a hundred times so, without a father of whom it must always be ashamed!"

"Remus," Morrighan sighed, "you know that's not true."

"Oh, I don't know," Harry hissed. "I'd be pretty ashamed of him."

But that was just a warm-up for Sirius.

"You know that child is going to be a target, Remus," Sirius growled. "Bellatrix at least will give it everything she's worth to go after Tonks and your child, and don't think she can't do it if she puts her mind to it! James and Lily died defending Harry. They'd expect for you to do the same if it came down to it!"

"How - how can you say that?" Remus gasped. "Sirius, this isn't about a desire for - for danger or personal glory - I can't... I-"

"Oh, I don't know about that," Morrighan said coolly. "There are a lot of ways to get away from them if that were all you wanted, but you seem to be seeking out danger, maybe you want to be a bit more like Sirius-"

"Morrighan, please," Hermione moaned, obviously realizing that Remus was near his breaking point, but that was exactly what Morrighan was pushing for. Sirius didn't give her a chance, though.

"I can't believe you," he snarled at Remus. "A Marauder, the one who says he would have died for his friends, a coward."

The wands came out, and Remus's was out before Sirius had time to reach for his and just as had happened to Harry in the books, Remus sent Sirius hurling across the room and was on his way out of the building by the time Sirius had shaken off the bit of disorientation and got to his feet again.

Hermione had taken off calling for Remus to come back, but he didn't. She returned to the kitchen looking around at Harry, Morrighan, and Sirius.

"How could you?" she moaned.

"It was easy," Morrighan sighed, watching Harry flexing his fingers into fists.

"Don't look at me like that!" Harry snapped at Hermione.

"It's not her fault, Harry," Sirius said firmly, wrapping an arm around Morrighan, probably more to steady himself than anything else.

"Yes," Morrighan sighed. "You don't want to start fighting now. It's not her fault."

"You shouldn't have said that stuff to Lupin, though," Ron muttered.

"No, he needed to hear it," Sirius insisted. "Trust me."

"Parents," Harry said softly, "shouldn't leave their kids unless - unless they've got to."

Morrighan took that as her cue to lead Sirius out of the room so that the kids could talk and find the information about Dumbledore and Rita Skeeter.

"Come on, love," she sighed to Sirius as Hermione made to comfort Harry. "Let's get you up to bed and patched up a bit, shall we?"

"Yes, love," he muttered, following her out of the kitchen and upstairs to bed.

At least things seemed to shape up as they were supposed to, Morrighan decided, curling up against Sirius. It might not be pretty, but if it got the job done, she would do what she had to do.


	29. Premonition

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to **_**JennLD**_**, my newest reader and reviewer! Thank you for your interest in this story!**

** -J**

The following day, with Morrighan's approval, the trio began taking turns watching the Ministry and organizing their break-in. Sirius and Morrighan, on the other hand, were sitting down together, playing with the girls, trying not to influence Harry, Ron, and Hermione with the temptation of knowing what was supposed to happen next. They had their own issues to consider.

"They don't come back to Grimmauld Place, though," Sirius said slowly, rocking Kitty and Tiffany on his lap. "What exactly causes that?"

"Yaxley catches hold of Hermione as they Disapparate to Grimmauld Place," Morrighan recites. "She shakes him off and Apparates away to a forest right away, but it's too late to go back because they've already brought him within the protection of the charm. So they don't go back."

"What?" Sirius gasped. "We can't let them come back, then, we've got to send them somewhere else. Morrighan, we've got nowhere else to go!"

"I know," she said soothingly as the girls began to make crying sounds. "Relax, love, I'll have a talk with Hermione. You're upsetting the girls."

He looked sufficiently ashamed with himself, relaxing a bit and rocking the girls.

"What are you going to have her do?" he cooed, kissing Tiffany on the forehead, because she was the most distressed. Kitty had calmed down the moment her father had begun rocking again, curling up against him contentedly.

"I was thinking of having her go to the manor," Morrighan admitted. "It's already been searched, so it's not like they'd do any more damage than they've done, and they won't find us through there. Is that all right?"

"I think that's brilliant, darling," he sighed, snuggling the two girls in his arms. "You're always so brilliant."

A couple of weeks passed, Morrighan helping the house-elves (who were getting along almost _too_ well) to care for the girls and doing her best to stay out of everybody's way. Sirius had this uncanny way of dragging her into things... bedrooms, showers, hidden corners of the house he remembered being much bigger in childhood... Morrighan couldn't believe how horny the man could be, but as she'd spent virtually their entire marriage pregnant, he was probably feeling severely undersexed, so she didn't exactly have any grounds to argue. As though she could. She could hardly get enough of him in her normal state, but her pregnancy hormones made her crave him even more, which he took full advantage of once he found out.

The trio more or less kept to themselves, and Remus didn't contact them, either sulking somewhere he thought he'd get more sympathy (which probably meant solitude) or actually trying to fake his smile with his wife again until he was able to come to terms with the fact that he'd been absolutely wrong about leaving her, and that Harry, Sirius, and Morrighan had been absolutely right.

It was probably the pain of admitting Sirius was right, Morrighan mused, but she didn't say it out loud, of course.

On the 22nd, the list of Muggle-borns who were wanted for interrogation was submitted to the paper, and Morrighan didn't even have to look at it to know that both she and Hermione were on the list.

"No," Sirius had growled violently at the paper. "She's not coming, you toad, and I'm not letting you hurt Hermione, either!"

"Sirius, she can't hear you," Morrighan said casually, feeding the girls some mashed peas while Hermione made tea for all of them.

"It makes me feel better," he said sullenly.

"And do you feel any better?" Harry asked, half-amused.

"No," Sirius admitted with a sigh. "No, I don't. Honestly, if anyone's capable of figuring how to reverse and get around the protective enchantments on this place, it's You-Know-Who."

Morrighan tensed slightly, and when Sirius gave her a nervous look she passed it off as a kick from one of the babies. Sirius instantly relaxed and reached out, touching her stomach, which, as always, prompted an actual kick, and then another. She winced as she was being moderately pummeled from the inside as Sirius grinned at her bulging abdomen.

"They kick harder when you do that," Morrighan sighed, glad that the conversation was no longer on the bad news in the paper or the idea that Voldemort could find a way to get at them, if he really wanted. What use would she be to Voldemort? What use would Sirius be?

But she knew there were so many answers to that question. Sirius was a powerful wizard. She knew what was going to happen. The pair of them and their children were excellent bait for Harry, as had been proved at the Ministry, when Voldemort wanted the prophecy.

Morrighan wasn't going to dwell on it. For all she knew, he knew nothing about the circumstances of her existence. The only person who could have told him was Severus, and Morrighan trusted him enough to truly believe that she wasn't in any danger if she stayed where she was. Yes, he would want Sirius, and Bellatrix would want to murder every single one of them. But if they couldn't be found, Morrighan and her family would be safe.

Hermione gave her a knowing look, though. That girl knew more than she ought, but Morrighan couldn't blame her for that. She'd been the same in her old life, and felt that way a lot just for her knowledge of the future.

"So," Morrighan finally sighed, "tell me what you three have got on the Ministry."

The trio began eagerly recounting their well-rehearsed information they'd gathered on their covert missions to the Ministry entrance to watch the workers. Sirius meanwhile used one hand to tease and feed his daughters and used the other to run his fingers through Morrighan's hair gently, lovingly. She'd never once felt happier to have him still alive than she did in that moment, feeling the safety of his presence in an uncertain world.

A little over a week later, it was the first of September, Morrighan awoke to frantic kicking of her unborn children, and Sirius's hand on her abdomen.

"Sirius," she moaned, "I love you, but don't do that while I'm sleeping. It makes them kick like mules."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, kissing her lips. "I just got really excited and I couldn't help myself. They're coming soon, aren't they?"

"Probably," she sighed.

"Can we make them come now?"

"No."

"But I want them now."

"Go play with the three you've already got," Morrighan moaned, finally opening her eyes to find Sirius very close to her face, smiling at her.

"I love you," he whispered, brushing some of her hair off her cheek. "You look so beautiful like this."

"Like what?" she snorted. "Pregnant?"

"Sleepy," he breathed against her neck. "Peaceful. Mine."

"I'm always yours," Morrighan gasped as he kissed her neck.

"I'm so lucky," he said, half teasing, but mostly with dripping sincerity in the words. Morrighan realized that she could feel that he was already hard from where his crotch met her stretched-out side.

"Sirius," she sighed, "I'm lucky. But let's have breakfast instead of sex, just for today, please? I'm also starving."

He heaved a disappointed sigh, but he kissed her forehead gently and led her down for breakfast. Kreacher was just setting breakfast before them when Hermione sat down beside Morrighan, yawning and opening the paper.

"Did you see the men stationed in the square?" she sighed to Sirius. "I think they half expect us to carry out our trunks and go to King's Cross."

Sirius flinched uncomfortably.

"Do you know who it was?" he said softly, petting Morrighan gently as though to calm her, while she was perfectly calm.

"Nobody I recognized," Hermione said with a shrug. "I don't think they seriously think we're leaving, or maybe they're not entirely sure where we are yet. I don't know. They aren't too much of a threat, yet, anyway."

"Hermione, I need to talk with you," Morrighan said. "Privately, if you don't mind. Could we go upstairs? The boys will be here any minute, I expect. Perhaps you could help me with the girls?"

"Sure," Hermione said, a bit confused. The two young women - for Morrighan realized that that was what they were - made their way up to the nursery Sirius and Morrighan had made for the girls in an old guest room.

"Hermione," Morrighan sighed, closing the door behind them, shutting out the sounds of the boys going down for breakfast, "when you go the Ministry, I can't tell you what will happen, but you can't come back here, not under any circumstance."

"Why?" Hermione asked, very unlike herself, giving in to the irrational to ask a question she already knew she shouldn't ask.

Hermione Granger was afraid.

"You'll be all right," Morrighan said slowly, "but for the safety of the girls, we don't want anyone else coming in this house if we can help it. Besides, you have a different path, and if you stay here, you won't get to follow it. If you'd like... Go to Black Manor if you feel like you need a safe place to regroup, but I hate to ask it of you not to come here."

"No, you wouldn't ask if it wasn't important," Hermione said quickly, assuring that she understood. "I'll be sure to remember, Morrighan. I would never do anything that would put any of you at risk, you know that. You've been so good to us. I wish I could be here for the birth, though."

"I wish that too," Morrighan said with a smile, "but it's better if you all do what you have to do and we don't keep you from it. Better for all of us. Oh, I think you should take Phineas Nigellus's portrait, too, when you go."

Hermione nodded, obviously seeing the value of the portrait instantly, and when the girls had all woken and were clambered into Morrighan's and Hermione's arms, the five of them went back down to the kitchen were then boys were pouring over the paper.

"Did you see this, Hermione?" Ron said incredulously. "Have you seen the front page?"

"I really didn't get a good look at it, no," Hermione answered, frowning. "Why, what is it?"

He slid the paper down to the two of them and Morrighan looked down to see the face of Severus sneering back up at her. It was the story declaring him the new headmaster of Hogwarts, and Hermione gasped, covering her mouth with horror.

"They've ruined Hogwarts," Harry sighed, running his fingers through his already-untidy hair. "Snape as Headmaster, no Muggle-borns allowed, and everybody's required to attend. Not to mention those two Death Eaters they've got parading around as teachers. You know, other than Snape."

Morrighan had to bite her lip not to defend Severus, knowing they couldn't know yet. Sirius gave her a knowing look at sat down, taking Nikki and Kitty from her as Hermione handed Tiffany over to Harry, probably thinking that holding a child would calm him. It did seem to work, and Harry snuggled Tiffany and seemed to calm immensely, although he was obviously still stewing just under the surface about Snape's appointment.

He had to, though she knew, to come to the decisions he had to come to.

"Tomorrow," Harry said, looking down at the newspaper as Ron was pulling out their notes on the Ministry. "We go tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Hermione said, surprised. "But Harry, there's so much-"

"Hermione, do you honestly believe that any more time is going to make us any better prepared than we are now for _breaking into the Ministry_?" Harry said, slightly annoyed.

Reluctantly, she shook her head.

"Then we go tomorrow," Harry repeated firmly. "The waiting is going to drive us crazy, and we need to do this as quickly as we can. We need to stop him."

Sirius smiled and nodded approvingly.

The trio spent most of the day finalizing their plans, while Sirius and Morrighan spent the time interacting with the girls and talking, just to keep their nerves under control.

"How did the chat with Hermione go?" Sirius asked, bouncing Nikki on his knee while Kitty was building a little city with the blocks Tiffany was insisting on putting in her mouth.

"Well," Morrighan said with an approving nod. "She's a very bright, understanding, reasonable girl. She's taking Phineas Nigellus with her, too."

A small smirk lit up his face.

"Is that for interrupting our first almost-sexual encounter?" he asked gleefully.

"No," Morrighan said with a giggle, "although that is an added bonus. No, she did it in the book, too."

"Speaking of rude portraits, where did my mother's portrait even go?" Sirius asked, confused. "I mean, I haven't even seen it in the hall or anything."

"No, I told Kreacher I didn't want the influx of guests disturbing her, so he helped me remove her from the wall and put her in the attic," Morrighan said mischievously. "I figure when he dies we can toss her."

Sirius perked up instantly.

"He dies?" he said, looking very much like a dog who'd just heard something in the distance.

"Oh, I don't know," Morrighan said honestly, with a shrug. "But that's really beside the point. The point is that Walburga Black is no longer screeching at us."

"Well, that's good," Sirius said slowly. "Hey, did you read that article about Skeeter's book on Dumbledore?"

"No, but I know what it says," Morrighan said nervously, taking a block out of Tiffany's mouth and wishing he would talk about anything else.

"Is there any truth to any of it?" he asked eagerly. "You must know something-"

"And I'll tell you," she promised, "but not now. Not until they leave tomorrow, at the very least."

"I suppose I can accept that," Sirius sighed.

They sat there for a while longer, playing with the girls. Finally Sirius gave another heavy sigh.

"What about Remus?" he said. "Did he go back to Tonks? Is everything okay there?"

No, everything was no okay, Morrighan knew, or at least it wouldn't be, but she didn't want to worry Sirius and she wasn't entirely sure yet how much he should know before it happened.

"No," Morrighan said slowly. "Well, I don't know. He might have. I suppose we'll find out eventually."

"I'm not sure if that's code for you not wanting to spoil things for me, but I suppose I'll take what I can get," Sirius said good naturedly, but whatever he said next was drowned out by sounds Morrighan quickly realized were coming from somewhere inside of her own head.

Images eventually swam up to block out the room around her as well, and Morrighan was somewhere she'd never been before, Bellatrix Lestrage standing over her, a maniacal look on her face as she brandished her wand at Morrighan. Sirius was in the corner, Morrighan realized, screaming. He wasn't in pain, she sensed, but he was in severe emotional anguish because... because... because why?

And then she felt the beginning of the Cruciatus Curse hitting her and in that moment, just as she was beginning to understand what was happening, Morrighan was harshly yanked back into the reality around her, sitting in the drawing room, her daughters playing with blocks and Sirius considering her with concern in his eyes.

"Are you all right?" he said urgently. "It looked like you were having a seizure..."

"I'm fine," Morrighan lied quickly. "I think I'm just tired."

But she wasn't tired. She was terrified. Morrighan realized in that moment that she and Sirius had watched all five daughters die, had been tortured, and Sirius had been told that Bellatrix was going to torture Morrighan until Morrighan no longer recognized her husband before killing them both, knowing how much pain it would cause Sirius, seeing Morrighan suffer so much pain that she eventually became like Alice Longbottom.

Would it come true? Morrighan knew that Albus said that not every vision has to be a picture of what must happen, but what could happen. If she wasn't careful, that was what would happen. It didn't have to happen. Morrighan suddenly had about a hundred thousand times the motivation she'd already had to make sure she didn't make any mistakes.

But one good thing came out of the vision.

"I know what I'm going to name them," she whispered, and Sirius looked at her with surprise and a bit of eagerness, like he wasn't sure whether it was proper to be excited when she seemed out of sorts.

"What?" he finally prompted in a breathless voice.

"Alisa Aurora," she sighed, curling up in his arms while the girls played. "And Haydée Estella."

"I love them," Sirius said earnestly. "I really love them. And I especially love that we came up with them before they came out. That was just too much stress."

Morrighan laughed, not so much because what he said was so funny, but because he was absolutely terrified and it felt better to laugh that to try to be completely natural. That way, when the tears of terror ran down her cheeks, Sirius mistook them to be products of her laughter, and he seemed at ease, even amused and proud that he'd mad her laugh so hard she cried.

And that was okay. Morrighan would figure it out. She wouldn't make mistakes. She would never find herself at Bellatrix's mercy. She would sooner die than be brought to that point, and she would rather Sirius die than to have to suffer through that very carefully selected brand of torture that his cousin knew almost better than anyone would drive Sirius himself to madness, even in a short period of time, without a single spell sent his way.

When Morrighan was getting into bed that night she ran her fingertips along Sirius's already-sleeping face, feeling the familiar texture of his skin. She would not let it happen. She couldn't. It was that simple.

It had to be.


	30. So It Begins

The trio must have left in the morning, before Sirius woke Morrighan, because by the time she woke they were gone.

"There was a message from Remus, too," Sirius said, brushing hair out of her eyes lovingly. "He's back with Tonks. Ted's going to have to run for it soon, though. The Registration Commission is out for him. Well, you probably knew that."

"I wasn't sure when," Morrighan sighed heavily, "but yeah, I knew. I don't like it, Sirius. I may not have been around for the first war, but I can tell you right now that I wish there hadn't been a second. This is horrible."

"Yes," Sirius agreed. "Yes, it is. But war in general is horrible. We know there have already been people killed, and I can only imagine what's happened to the people we don't know about. You can bet it won't be in the paper."

But that wasn't news. Morrighan had long since accepted that the media was never going to be an accurate source of information, that everything must be read through a lens. But at this point, Sirius was right. Plenty would just not be there, forget about reported incorrectly or with a strong tint in the other direction. It just wouldn't be there.

They spent the day wondering what had happened, and when there was a report on the wireless that Harry had been spotted breaking into and defacing the Ministry, that the price on his head was even higher, Sirius and Morrighan exchanged a nervous look.

"Does he have the sliver of mirror I told you to put in his rucksack?" Morrighan whispered.

"Of course," Sirius whispered. "I promised I would."

"I'm just nervous, Sirius," Morrighan said, relieved. "I don't want to forget something important and I'm likely to be a bit obnoxiously for a bit."

"You're not obnoxious," he assured her, but then she gave a strangled sound. Sirius sat up straight, looking at her nervously. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Morrighan said slowly, resisting the urge to reach for her stomach. She thought she might be going into labor, but what could she do? They were in hiding, everyone was in hiding, and so she couldn't go to the hospital. Tonks needed Andromeda. And Molly, it didn't seem fair to call for Molly when she was surely sitting around terrified about Ron.

"That's not nothing," Sirius said, starting to panic. "That's the sound you made when you went into labor last time! Have you started contractions?"

"Sirius, I'm fine," Morrighan lied again, "just a kick."

"Don't lie," he said frantically. "Why are you lying? What's wrong?"

"I don't want to call for Molly," Morrighan finally said, feeling hot tears streak down her cheeks. "She doesn't need the stress."

"She'll not thank you for missing the birth of our children, Morrighan," Sirius said urgently. "Now, are you having contractions or aren't you? Be honest."

She sighed, nodding finally, and Sirius rushed off to send a Patronus to Molly, rushing back, saying that he'd given instructions to Kreacher, who seemed very excited.

Morrighan let Sirius settle her on their bed, let him hold her hand and kiss her forehead as she sobbed.

"Sirius what are we doing?" she cried. "Why are we bringing more children into this world, into this war?"

He looked terrified, frantic, but he hugged her head to his chest and said, "Because we have to live our lives, Morrighan. We might be cooped up in this house, but we have to live our lives anyway, and I love you, and you love me, and we love all five of our daughters."

"Yes," she whimpered, feeling another wave of contractions and groaning. "This is going to be a harder labor, Sirius, I can just feel it."

He blanched at that, remembering the triplets. If twins were worse than triplets, something was wrong, and Morrighan was equally terrified that something was going to go terribly wrong, but she was a bit distracted from panic by her pain.

"It's going to be fine," Sirius said in a shaking voice he was obviously failing to smooth out with his obvious effort. "Everything's going to be fine. Molly's on her way and she knows what she's doing."

Morrighan nodded.

"The girls are being taken care of?" Morrighan said, forcing herself to think of something other than the pain wracking her abdomen once more.

"Kreacher's tending them eagerly and seeing to anything Molly says we need. He knows you're going into labor. He's also able to make us food if it takes that long."

"It will," Morrighan sighed. "It's going to be a long one."

Sirius blanched again, but he said nothing about his fears, about his own anxiety. Morrighan could read it all over his face, but she knew he didn't want to worry her, and she appreciated that.

"Sirius," she moaned, another round of contractions, "I think I must have started labor in my sleep."

"Really?" Sirius said, incredulous. "You seemed perfectly calm."

"This is getting a bit ridiculously close together pretty fast," she argued. "I think I must have slept through the start of it."

"I guess it's possible, for all I know," he conceded. "Molly's going to be here soon, though, she'll know better than me what's going on."

"Right," Morrighan gasped. "Does Tiffany have her blanket?"

"Yes," Sirius assured her.

"And the pygmy puff is fed?"

"That thing could go days without food before we started hearing about it. And we would hear about it. But yes, the unnamed puffball has been fed."

"Sirius," she began, unsure what she was meaning to say, but the words died on her lips as another contraction caused her to gasp in pain. "Sirius, I don't like this," she finally said.

He said nothing, which meant he was so concerned that he couldn't even come up with something comforting to placate her mind, which was growing with panic every second. She needed Molly. She needed something. She was already starting to sweat, probably more from fear than anything else.

Not even a minute later Molly was coming frantically through the door, pulling Sirius off to the side for a full report on what had happened when, and when Sirius told her what Morrighan had said about how she might have started contractions in her sleep, Morrighan could see Molly's face darken.

"Well," she finally sighed, "it sounds like the girls have a couple of very strong magical cores, or at least one of them does. Bill and the twins and Ginny were all like that. But the twins, well, it was far from an easy labor, even by the standards of difficult labors."

Morrighan could see the panic on Sirius's face, and she gave another gasp of pain. Molly rushed him out of the room, tending to Morrighan instantly.

"I'm sorry, Molly," Morrighan gasped. "I'm so sorry to drag you out of your home like this."

"It's all right," Molly said, patting Morrighan's head with a damp cloth. "It's all right, I'm happy to help. Can you tell me how Ronnie is? Is he all right? Is he safe?"

No, Morrighan realized. He wasn't all right and he wouldn't be safe for quite some time. But she couldn't put it in that way to Molly, not at that time, not especially when the well-being of herself and her daughters might depend upon Molly's ability to focus and think clearly.

"He was injured, but Hermione's tending him well and he'll make full recovery," Morrighan managed to say. "And they're not in any more danger than the rest of us at the moment."

That was probably true. None of them were really safe, not with the giant targets on them painted on by the Death Eaters and then aimed at by anyone who wasn't actively fighting Voldemort. But thankfully, Molly seemed calmed by the thought that her son was at least in good hands and no worse off than he would be with her. It was like she was already giving her motherly approval for the marriage Morrighan knew would happen one day, but Morrighan was too busy being wracked with pain to think too much about Hermione and Ron's future marital bliss.

"Molly!" she gasped, pained. "Molly, how long do you think this will take?"

"You're not fully dilated yet," Molly said pityingly. "You're not near yet. Don't worry, you'll be just fine."

Perfect. Morrighan was nowhere near ready to pop out the girls yet and she already wanted to die. Molly did seem to sympathize, but it didn't make Morrighan feel any better. She wanted Sirius back. She wanted him in the room, but Molly assured her that it wasn't a good idea, and that toward the end she wouldn't want him there at all. Morrighan didn't see how that was possible, but at least he had their daughters to keep him preoccupied, so that at least one of them wasn't too terribly worried.

She cried out again, ignoring whatever Molly was saying, knowing it wasn't important. Her pain was important. That was all

About twenty hours later, Morrighan was still going at it. Molly had decided that she was finally dilated enough to start pushing, which was both a hardship and a relief because Morrighan was glad it was nearly over but she didn't feel that she had the strength left for pushing. A primal scream left her lips as she tried to push, and she heard footsteps rushing down the hall, she heard Sirius opening the door, but her face was so contorted with effort and pain that she couldn't really see much of anything.

"What the hell was that?" he cried. "What is that sound?"

"Sirius, it's fine, you need to leave," Molly said in a voice so calm that Morrighan wanted to strangle her. Instead, she gave another primal scream and Sirius gave a yelp of surprise and horror.

"Molly, why is she making that sound? Is she okay?"

"She's fine, Sirius, it's perfectly natural."

"There was nothing natural about that sound! Don't lie to me, Molly! That's my wife!"

"Get out of the room!" Morrighan screamed. "Don't come back until Molly gets you or I'll throttle you, Sirius!"

There was a small pause that Morrighan was only faintly aware of as she pushed. Then she heard Sirius leave the room and she continued pushing, screaming, and gasping obscenities at an unceasingly patient Molly Weasley.

After what she would later find out was two hours later, Morrighan felt the first child come out carefully guided by Molly, and she spat out Alisa's name as best she could while she recognized that she still had another child to push out and Molly took care of the cord and washing off Alisa.

"Beautiful name," Molly said encouragingly. "One more, Morrighan. You're almost done."

An hour and a half of agony later, Morrighan gave her last guttural cry and Molly guided little Haydée Estella into the world, placing her beside her sister.

"Sirius," Morrighan choked. "I need Sirius."

She could feel tears streaming down her cheeks, tears of exhaustion and joy and guilt, and all she wanted was to hold Sirius, and all she wanted was to hold her daughters, and she just had so much emotion that she didn't know what to do with it all, and as soon as Molly had cleaned and wrapped Haydée, she rushed to get Sirius for Morrighan.

Morrighan watched the sobbing forms of her daughters with relief and love flowing through her, wishing that Sirius would hurry up and meet his daughters. She half-wanted to apologize for her behavior during labor, and she half-wanted to forget it ever happened, but it hadn't really been something to apologize for. She hadn't been herself. Sirius knew that.

Or did he?

He came into the room cautiously, followed closely by Molly who looked a bit motherly toward him, as though he was a small child needing reassurance. When he looked at Morrighan lying in the bed, exhausted from her exertion, he gave a sigh of relief.

Sirius then scooped up the crying girls and sat down on the bed beside Morrighan.

"Hello, beautiful," he whispered, handing her Alisa. "I'm glad you're done. How do you feel?"

"Tired," she admitted with a shrug. "I don't think my brain is ready for sleep yet, though. How are the triplets?"

Sirius smiled.

"They're fast asleep. I wish we could tell everyone... Tonks will want to know about the babies."

"She will," Morrighan said sadly. "She can't leave her parents' home now, though. We'll have to get news to her, maybe send pictures..."

"I'd be happy to find a way to pass along anything to anyone," Molly said eagerly. "I know Kingsley is going to visit in about a week, as well. We're going to have Order members visiting every few weeks or so, make sure you two have everything you need..."

"We have house-elves, Molly, we're not going to starve," Sirius pointed out. "Thank you, though. It will be nice to have some company, some first-hand news from the outside world."

"They're beautiful," Molly sighed, touching Haydée's cheek gently. "You two make such beautiful babies."

Morrighan couldn't help but laugh at that, so she laughed hysterically.

Sirius cuddled the girls in his arms, kissing Morrighan on the top of her head as she laughed, smiling down at the three of them.

"So when can we have more?" he said happily.

"Not until the war's over," Morrighan sighed, tired enough once she was done laughing that she could only gently touch the faces of her daughters and smile sleepily at them. "I promise we can talk about it again then. You've got five. That should keep you preoccupied for now. My parents had a hell of a time raising five children, and we didn't all come at once like this."

"I guess I can live with that," Sirius whispered, stroking Morrighan's sweaty hair gently. "But we will have more?"

"We'll talk later," Morrighan sighed. "I'm quite tired, Sirius. And I imagine Molly wants to go get the news of the day from her husband, who is going to have a lot to tell her when she gets back to the Burrow."

"Oh, yes!" Molly said, surprised. "I suppose I should leave you two alone, at any rate. Let me know if you need anything and I'll be right over."

"Of course, Molly, thank you," Sirius said, hugging the Weasley matriarch warmly. "Travel safe."

Molly took her leave of the couple and their new twins as the four of them were all cuddled together in their bed. Morrighan rested her head on Sirius's shoulder and cuddled her arm around both daughters and her husband.

"What did I do to deserve you?" she sighed.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?" he chuckled, kissing her hair gently.

And he had, Morrighan recalled vaguely. He'd asked her over and over again how he had managed to deserve her, but she still thought it was the other way around, her not deserving him.

The following morning, Morrighan found that Sirius had taken care of the girls, with a bit of help from Kreacher, and he carried a tray of breakfast up to her.

"The twins are fine," he assured her. "Our triplets are apparently curious about the newcomers, though. Should be interesting to see how they react to this supposed intrusion."

Morrighan snorted, taking the toast from him as he finished buttering it.

"I suppose you're right, this ought to be very interesting. Sirius, do you think I could get a nap at some point today? The labor was a bit exhausting and I want to recover as quickly as possible."

"Darling," Sirius said lovingly, buttering another piece of toast, "when you finish breakfast, you can sleep as long as you like. I just want to make sure you eat something. I can imagine you're exhausted."

"Can you?" she asked, amused.

"Well, not from personal experience, or anything," he said, rather more seriously than she would have expected. "But you're always worn out after we have sex for a few hours, and that's nothing compared with the sounds you were making during labor for many, many more hours than sex, so yes, I can imagine you're completely exhausted."

Morrighan had never really considered that he might understand how she felt. Sure, he hadn't felt her pain, but he'd certainly felt more than his fair share of pain in his life, she knew, and he knew what it was like to be physically exhausted.

"Okay, maybe you can," she admitted sheepishly. "Anyway, I _am_ tired, so how much more are you going to make me eat?"

He was taking her health just as seriously when she wasn't pregnant as when she was, so he made her eat the whole tray, which was three eggs, two pieces of toast, and a pear. It was a breakfast she would have eaten on a typical day, but she was so tired that Sirius was actually buttering her bread and cutting her eggs.

"Can we save the pear for later?" she whined as he held it up to her lips, clearly intending to turn it for her as she at off the stem. "I'm tired, love. Eating fruit when I wake up instead of before I go to sleep shouldn't make a difference. Besides, don't you have things to be doing?"

He blushed sheepishly, setting the pear back on the tray.

"Sorry," he said softly. "I just... I just don't like the idea of not being by you right now, even if it's for a few hours. I... you're going to be okay? Hermione led them away and nobody's going to find us, right?"

"Right," Morrighan assured him, lifting his hand to her lips and kissing it gently, comfortingly. "Everything's going to be fine, Sirius. I promise. No, go! You've got nappies to change, or something, I'm sure."

He gave a nervous laugh, kissed her forehead and carried the mostly-empty tray out of the room with him, leaving a sleepy Morrighan alone with her thoughts and her hopes that she hadn't just told him a lie.


	31. Living Knowing

It was late October when they got the news, almost Morrighan's birthday, she thought, although she wasn't keeping track of days anymore. Ginny and her friends, the remnants of Dumbledore's Army, had attempted to steal Gryffindor's sword from Snape's office.

"What were they planning to do?" Sirius sighed, spooning some mashed peas Molly had sent into Kitty's mouth. "I mean, I know they knew it belonged to Harry, but what were they honestly hoping to do with it once they got it? There was no way they could get it to him."

"I don't know," Morrighan admitted, cleaning the mashed carrot's off Nikki's face gently. "I'm going to have to go feed the twins, love, can you manage here?"

"Absolutely," Sirius said, with a grin as Kitty tried to spit the peas out in his face, but didn't give it enough force so they just dribbled down her chin. "Just this one and then I clean them up and put them down to bed."

At the 'B' word, the girls started screaming, obviously understanding that they were going to have to do things they didn't want to do like baths and sleeping. Morrighan rolled her eyes.

"Way to go, Sirius. I'll come back and help when I'm done."

He grunted, dealing with trying to calm Kitty down enough so they could at least pretend she ate the rest of her peas instead of just spitting them all out onto her chin so that he could then calm the others enough to get them to bed. Morrighan just went upstairs, taking the twins out of their cribs and breast-feeding them carefully.

The nice thing about twins was that she could feed them both at once, whereas with the triplets she'd had to juggle them a bit to keep them all relatively happy.

Once the girls had fallen asleep in her arms, Morrighan gently placed them back in their cribs, waving her wand to gently rock them deeper into sleep and watching them as they yawned and clutched their little blankets tightly.

She was surprised to feel arms around her and she turned to find Sirius standing there, the obvious signs of having just washed peas from his hair, and a smile on his face as he held her against him.

"You've forgotten something," he said softly. "Something terribly important."

Morrighan began to panic. Did she forget something about the girls? About their safety? About events? What could she have forgotten?

And then he whispered against her skin, "Happy birthday, beautiful," and Morrighan couldn't help but smile a bit as she leaned back into his arms, allowing him to lead her out of the twins' room, away to their own room where Sirius laid her gently back on the bed, kissing her neck.

"I wasn't sure what to have Molly get you," he admitted. "There's a cake in the pantry that I'm going to feed you tomorrow. But... I want to thank you so much."

"Whatever for?" she gasped, digging her fingers slightly into his shoulders as he ran his tongue along her collarbone.

"For keeping me alive," he whispered. "For bearing me five beautiful girls. For being the amazing, beautiful woman who makes me smile every time I think about her and gives me chills of the best sort when she touches me and... Oh, Morrighan, I just don't deserve you."

She knew that wasn't true, but she was incapable of coming up with a coherent word to say so as his hands stripped away her clothing and his lips gave their full attention to the skin that was left bare at their mercy.

"Sirius," she finally managed to sigh. "Sirius.

"I love you," he whispered, pressing his lips to her skin. "There's a present under the bed. Some lingerie and a notebook for you to write in. I told everyone to save presents so that they get here tomorrow so I could surprise you tonight because I knew you'd forget. I... I hope you don't mind."

All she could do was moan and shake her head as his fingertips traced her thighs, upward, searching for her wet center.

How could she possibly mind anything at all when he was making her so dizzy with desire?

He knew exactly how to make her whine, and she began to writhe beneath him, gasping his name as he mumbled endearments against her skin, his fingers driving her mad with lust as they massaged her most sensitive parts.

His lips found their way back up to her lips and he kissed her with such force and passion that she melted twice as completely as she had already been, moaning with the thrill of all of the sensations.

Why was he being so wonderful? She had already forgotten, but wonderful it was. And really, did it matter what his reason was in a moment like that?

She gasped for air as his lips trailed back down her neck, clawed frantically at his back as he positioned himself to enter her, and nearly screamed his name as he did thrust inside of her, then in and out, in and out, over and over until she lost track of the sounds she was making and the way her body thrust into his rhythm and lost herself in the intense pleasure of feeling him inside her, clenching slightly around him without really even realizing she was doing it.

It wasn't long before both of them came, not exactly together, but in quick succession, and Sirius rolled over onto his side, pulling Morrighan tight against his chest as he ran his fingers through her mussed up hair.

"I love you, darling," he whispered, kissing the top of her head gently. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," Morrighan sighed, pressing her lips to his.

"Happy birthday, my sweet," he said against her lips, kissing her languidly until they were too tired to do even that and she simply fell asleep in his arms, relishing the feel and smell of him and how safe she felt.

It was early December when Bill visited them, and Morrighan had begun bundling up the girls in thick layers of clothing, not trusting Charms to keep their health.

"Bill!" Sirius said, surprised as Bill let himself in through the front door, lifting a Disillusionment Charm. "Don't do that, you could scare a man to death! You are Bill, aren't you?"

"Bill Weasley," Bill said impatiently. "Savaged by Fenrir Greyback, you came to my wedding to Fleur in August and left early. I spent the first year of the war using English lessons as a reason to flirt with her."

"That's good enough for me!" Morrighan said happily, rushing forward with Nikki in her arms, handing the child to a tired-looking Bill and giving the Weasley a big hug.

"You knew, didn't you?" he asked, trying to keep Nikki from tugging on his earing. "You knew Ron was going to come to Shell Cottage."

"Yes," Morrighan admitted, scooping up the twins while Sirius played blocks with Tiffany and Kitty. "How is he?"

"Miserable and ashamed," Bill sighed, sitting down, taking out his earing, and sticking it his pocket, out of the whining Nikki's reach. "As he should be."

"What's going on?" Sirius asked. "What's Ron done?"

"He abandoned Harry and Hermione," Bill grumbled, obviously disgusted with his little brother.

Morrighan sighed.

"Yes, he did," she admitted. "He was having a hard time dealing with the effects of the Horcrux they found. They're still trying to figure out a way to destroy it. They're looking for the sword of Gryffindor."

"Wait, Snape's got it," Sirius said. "They know that, you told me so."

"Ah, well, it's a copy," Morrighan said sheepishly. "They know _that_. Don't worry, they'll get the sword soon enough. Anyway, Ron regrets leaving, and that's the main thing. He'll go back."

"That's why I came here," Bill said, ignoring Nikki as she tugged on his hair, giggling. "I mean, you're the only person who knows where they are, so you can help him get back, right?"

"Bill," Morrighan sighed, "I don't know exactly where they're going to be until Christmas and-"

"Then we'll bring him over for Christmas!" he said excitedly. "It's the perfect cover!"

"But-"

"I'll see you at Christmas Sirius, Morrighan!" Bill called, kissing Nikki promptly on the forehead before setting her down beside a bewildered Tiffany, who seemed to be trying to figure out what all the fuss was about. Either that, or why her sister had taken her block, which Kitty had been doing all night.

"You're not going to tell him where they are, are you?" Sirius said with a frown. "I mean, I'm not saying you should, but you're not going to."

"I can't, Sirius," she sighed. "It would change everything. But I'll give him some hints. He'll be back with them not too long after that. He just needs to find his own way."

"I know," Sirius said gently, leaving the triplets to play on the ground and coming to sit beside Morrighan, scooping Haydée into his arms. "Am I allowed to ask where they're going to be?"

Morrighan frowned, looking down at her daughters as they played on the floor. Her frown shifted into a small smile when she saw that Nikki and Kitty were sharing blocks, although Kitty was obviously in charge of their creation, whatever it was. She kept moving things her sister had put down. Just like her father, always had to be in control.

"I suppose," she finally said, "if you promise you won't say anything when they're here."

Sirius snorted.

"What do you take me for, darling? I've kept my peace thus far, haven't I?"

"Oh, very well," she said with a small, impatient sort of smile as he kissed her cheek, rocking their daughter gently in his arms. "They're going to be in Godric's Hollow Christmas Eve, and I think they're going to be in the Forest of Dean on Christmas, but I don't remember if that's exact or not. There's hours unaccounted for, locationally."

"What do you mean?" he asked curiously as Haydée yawned and stretched in his arms.

"I mean Harry's unconscious for a bit," she said casually. "So I'm not entirely sure where they are in between. Only Hermione could confirm that."

Sirius frowned and cuddled the sleepy girl in his arms a little bit tighter. Morrighan knew he was worried about Harry, and she did assure him that Harry would be all right, but he said that wasn't what was bothering him.

"He's going to see their graves," he whispered. "I went back there when I got out of Azkaban, love. I know what Godric's Hollow looks like. The graveyard... they've even made a memorial of the destroyed cottage they died in, haven't done it up at all, although they've hidden it from Muggles... I don't know how he's going to deal with it all."

"Sirius," Morrighan whispered, "he's going to be all right. I promise, he'll be okay. He needs to see it, though. He needs to know. And he'll gain something from the visit, even if it's not what he hoped for. Hermione will gain something, too, that will eventually lead them where they need to be, even if it doesn't seem like it at first. They never do anything the easy way."

"No," Sirius laughed. "He's like James and me that way."

Morrighan smiled a little to herself, knowing the sort of trouble Harry always seemed to find himself in, knowing without a doubt that Sirius had never had such trouble growing up.

Or perhaps he had. After all, he and James grew up during a war, too. They'd fought too young, they'd had their lives marred by Voldemort. It wasn't personal with them, not until Harry came along. Lily and James Potter had been just another talented pair of wands. Sirius had been just another blood traitor, refusing the ways of his family. They weren't unique, they were just very, very good at what they did, everything they did.

A few days later, they got word from Molly that Ginny made it home all right for Christmas. Morrighan tried to hide her frown from her husband, but he caught it as she was putting the girls to bed.

"What happened?" he asked. "Who's not okay?"

"Luna," Morrighan admitted sadly. "She's been kidnapped to keep her father in line... She's okay, though. Her father's in worse shape, really. She's all he's got left. He's not as... independent as her, not without her. If that makes sense."

"Sort of," Sirius said slowly. "So... Harry and Hermione...?"

"Are fine at present," Morrighan sighed.

"Good," Sirius muttered, sighing. "Good."

She knew he was upset about Luna, but she understood his lack of expressed empathy for her and her father. If he allowed himself to feel for every person that went missing, every name they'd been hearing on the lengthening lists that Potterwatch was putting out (which they'd not missed a show of because they received semi-regular tips about when they'd be on), they'd go mad with grief for people they didn't know or knew only in name or from Morrighan's knowledge of their lives in the books.

"I don't like this, Morrighan," he finally sighed, leading her back to their bedroom. "I don't like this waiting and wondering. I wish-"

"No," Morrighan said, her voice shaking, sitting on the bed stubbornly. "Please don't say you want to fight, Sirius. Please don't leave me."

"Darling," he said slowly, kneeling at her feet.

"_No_," she insisted. "Sirius, I'm barely even an adult. We've got five kids and I'm only twenty two and I've got no way to support them and I-"

"Morrighan," he said firmly, taking her hands in his. "If it ever came to that, you would still have our money. You know that."

"I don't want our money!" Morrighan said, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. "I want you, money or no money, and I want you alive and holding me and playing with our girls and... and... Sirius, please, don't you dare even say that you would leave me, not even for a minute."

He sighed, kissing her hands.

"Never," he agreed. "I'm never leaving you, love, you or the girls, until I dry up and shrivel of old age and you're absolutely sick of my ugly mug."

"Never," she whispered, leaning down and kissing his lips eagerly. "I could never be sick of you, my love."

Sirius smiled up at her sadly and she knew he really wanted to fight, but she didn't want to think about that. He'd just promised, after all, and that promise would hold him, at least for a little while. They only had to hold on less than five more months and it would all be over. He didn't know that, of course, but she was eagerly counting down the days until she and her children could go back to their home at Black Manor, back to her bed with Sirius, where she could make him all the children he wanted, just as long as he stayed alive.

Morrighan laced her fingers in his hair, pressing her lips to his once more, kissing as vigorously as she could until he began to respond to her kiss with fervor, growling slightly in the back of his throat as she pulled his face closer. She shivered in anticipation as he went from the floor, on his knees, to standing in front of her, pulling her to her feet before he scooped her up in his arms and tossed her gently onto the center of the bed.

Sirius quickly clambered onto the bed, hovering over her as his lips attacked her neck, his hands frantically scrambling to peel off all of their clothes. Morrighan helped him with the clothing, eager to feel his skin against hers, aching to feel him inside of her. She moaned as his tongue traced the line of her collarbone. He growled at her moan.

"You are incredible," he whispered against her freshly bare skin, carefully unclasping and removing her lacy bra before moving down to find her panties with his teeth. "Delicious."

Morrighan whimpered, writhing as his mouth began pleasuring her through the thin lace of her panties. He growled low in the back of his throat, the vibrations driving her mad with lust.

How had this even started? Morrighan couldn't remember, so she supposed it wasn't important as her head fell back onto the pillow and her back arched.

He didn't divert himself too much, though, soon pulling away her panties and lapping the newly bared flesh eagerly like a thirsty dog. Morrighan nearly giggled to herself with that image and half wanted to ask him to transform. She knew he would, but she wanted _him_ so badly in that moment that she decided it wasn't the right time... _if_ there was a right time for such a thing.

But that thought, too, was chased from her mind as Sirius's mouth moved from between her legs to her lips, and she moaned at the taste of herself on his lips. He inserted a few fingers into her as though to test if she was wet enough.

She was dripping.

Sirius positioned himself, mouth still on hers as he thrust into her eagerly. Morrighan sighed at the pleasing sensation of him filling her up.

When they came, Morrighan cried out his name, thankful that she'd managed to once more distract him from what would probably lead to his untimely death. Sex, pregnancy, their children, tears... Whatever it took, Morrighan told herself as she curled into the sheets with him, their bodies intertwined as he kissed her forehead gently, petting her hair to soothe her into sleep. Whatever it took, no matter what it was, it was worth it to keep him alive, to keep him with her. And not just for herself anymore, but for their daughters, and for the ones she knew instinctively would come in the future, should he live.


	32. Christmastime

Sirius woke Morrighan up with kisses on Christmas Eve.

"Kreacher's taking care of breakfast and the girls," Sirius whispered, kissing her neck. "I wanted to spend some time alone with you."

He wanted to take his mind off something happening to Harry, Morrighan knew, but she decided she would take it.

"Well, good morning to you, too," she sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck and bringing his lips back up to hers. He kissed her vigorously, moaned slightly, then pulled away.

"I just had a thought," he said anxiously.

"That can't be good," she sighed, letting her head fall back onto the pillows. "What?"

Sirius sat up a bit, frowning.

"Love, I'm not only older than you by nearly twenty years, but I was aged a lot in Azkaban."

"So?" she asked casually, tracing her fingertips across his bare chest, admiring his tattoos.

He grabbed her hand to stop to motion, and she looked up to find his face very solemn.

"Darling, I'm going to get old, and I'm going to get old long before you and... Morrighan, I'm terrified."

"Of growing old?" she asked curiously.

"Of growing old before you," he whispered, bringing her fingertips to his sweet lips. "Without you."

"Sirius," Morrighan sighed, smiling slightly. "I think having all these children you're planning is going to age me plenty before my time. I imagine we'll be fairly well matched by the time I'm your age."

"Don't say that," he said sadly, kissing her fingertips again. "Please, don't say that. I want to think of you like this forever, young and beautiful and mine..."

"I won't always be young and beautiful," Morrighan admitted, taking her hand from him and using it to brush aside some of his hair that had fallen in his face, "but I will always be yours."

She saw tears fall from his eyes, tears she hadn't realized were forming.

"My love," she whispered, putting her hand to his chin and lifting it so that he was looking at her with watery grey eyes. "Sirius, please. What's wrong?"

"I'm so scared," he whimpered, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tightly to his chest, his tears falling onto her hair as he held her. "I'm so scared that this war is going to turn out badly somehow, that you'll be taken from me or... or... I don't know, darling, I'm just so afraid."

"There's nothing to be afraid of," she soothed. "Trust, me, sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere. We're safe here, love. We're safe and I'm yours and everything's going to be fine, all right?"

Sirius nodded, although she wasn't sure he truly believed the words. Still, as far as she could tell, as far as her visions had taken her, she wasn't going to die. So how could he be so nervous?

But then she realized that she'd not told him about the visions, that the only living person who knew about them was Severus, and that Severus certainly wouldn't have mentioned it to Sirius.

"Darling, there's something I need to tell you," she whispered. "I think it will make you feel better."

So she told him of the day she went to see Severus when they were in the castle, how she'd Seen, how Dumbledore had confirmed it, and how she'd had various prophecies and Sights since then.

"We're going to have more children, Sirius," she whispered, caressing his hair. "Now, how would we do that if something were to happen to one of us? They were _our_ children, darling. I know it."

His lips upturned into a smile.

"Really?" he said with childlike delight. "How many?"

"I don't know," she laughed. "But certainly we had lots of children. You'll be quite pleased, I'm sure."

"I already am," Sirius muttered, kissing her neck. "So we're going to be okay. We're going to be okay and things are going to be fine and we're going to have lots more kids and we're going to live happily ever after."

Morrighan snorted.

"Sirius, there's no such thing as happily ever after."

"There will be for you and me, love," he said stubbornly. "We're going to be the happiest people in the world, I swear it."

Morrighan couldn't help but smile at that stubborn naivety that Sirius clung to so avidly. She wanted to tell him that he was right and everyone lived happily ever after, not just them, but she didn't want to lie to him, so instead she just kept her mouth shut and moaned slightly as he began kissing her breasts, nibbling them gently, causing her to squirm slightly with the heat that was rapidly building between them.

It was cut off abruptly, though, with the sound of one of the girls screaming at the top of her lungs downstairs, which of course set the other four off screaming, and neither Morrighan nor Sirius wanted to leave Kreacher to take care of all of that shrieking.

"They've got lungs like their mother," Sirius said proudly as they made their way downstairs, hand in hand.

"Whatever that means," Morrighan muttered, sleepily, yawning.

His lips lingered close to her hear as he whispered, "I seem to recall you getting quite a lot of practice screaming, darling."

She flushed, but otherwise didn't respond has he gave her a quick kiss on the temple and they made it to the kitchen, where Kreacher was attempting to food the shrieking children.

It took a lot of effort to calm the girls down enough to feed them, then to feed themselves, and Morrighan and Sirius sighed, cleaning the girls up after their chaotic feeding.

"Well," Sirius said with a smirk, "this isn't at all how I pictured spending this morning, darling, but I suppose it will do."

Morrighan laughed and curled up against Sirius's chest, already exhausted and it wasn't even noon yet. She wondered where Hermione and Harry were at that very moment, preparing for their trip to Godric's Hollow, the trip that would change several things drastically.

That evening, Sirius and Morrighan put the girls to bed after helping them each open one present, which had been an abbreviated version of a holiday tradition Morrighan's family had had. Of course, the girls just got little silly toys that they thought were marvelous, stuffed animals and rattles and the like, but once the girls were asleep Sirius and Morrighan agreed to exchange a single present, something small.

Sirius settled down beside her on their bed and pressed a wrapped parcel into her hands.

"Happy Christmas, darling," he whispered, kissing her temple as she handed him the clumsily wrapped present she'd gotten him.

"Happy Christmas, love," she sighed in response, half hoping they could set the gifts aside and simply get caught up in the heat of the moment they'd left off with that morning.

No such luck, and she opened the parcel in her hands quickly, finding a small necklace, not nearly as expensive as many of the pieces of jewelry he'd insisted on getting her. She frowned slightly, looking at the runes on the charm and trying to translate them. She looked up at him, confused.

He'd opened to find the book she'd given him, a copy of the Muggle novel _Anna Karenina_, in which she had written that she would read him aloud his favorite parts so he didn't have to bore himself with oat farming practices in Russia.

"Ah, the runes," he said with a smile. "It's older than the stuff you would have learned in Ancient Runes, even at N.E.W.T. level. They're pre-Merlin. Anyway, they're the ancient symbol of the Black family, before we had a family crest. I had it made a while ago and was waiting for the right time to give it to you."

"How long ago?" Morrighan asked, curious, as he helped her put on the necklace.

"Well," he admitted sheepishly, "I drew up the design before you got pregnant, and I had it made up about a week before our wedding."

She blinked up at him, surprised. He'd really wanted her to be his wife so long?

"I knew I wanted to wear something that made you mine," he whispered, tracing her collarbone around the charm. "Something that didn't make me think of my childhood, something nobody would recognize but the two of us, and maybe Dumbledore. He seems to know these sorts of things, doesn't he?"

"He did," Morrighan said sadly. "When he was alive."

Sirius frowned slightly, pressing his lips to her chin thoughtfully before pulling back to look in her eyes.

"Do you ever regret not trying to save him?"

"Nearly every day," she admitted. "But it was the right thing. I know it."

Sirius nodded, turning the lights off, wrapping his arms tightly around her, and laying them back in the bed.

"You always do the right thing, my love," he assured her. "It was what he wanted. He told you so himself, remember?"

"Not for him," Morrighan whispered. "It's Severus I feel sorry for."

Sirius stiffened slight at this, but he didn't say anything bad about Severus, knowing it would have hurt his wife. She knew he was being unnecessarily jealous, and part of her thought it was sort of sweet, but she couldn't just keep letting him be silly about such things. She was his, and that was that, and even if Severus found some way to survive she wasn't going to just suddenly up and leave Sirius for him.

That would be absurd.

She loved Sirius with every fiber of her being.

So she was glad when he relaxed slightly, pressing his lips gently to her throat.

"I'm glad I've got you, anyway," he sighed, his hands caressing her torso gently, working their way slowly up to her eagerly awaiting breasts. "At this point I can hardly believe I ever lived without you. It's hard to even imagine life without you." He paused, raising his head slightly to look at her in the near-darkness. "It's not happy, darling, I can tell you that right now. I was miserable without you, wasn't I?"

He was referring to himself in the books, the version of him that Morrighan was so familiar with that it made her ponder sometimes how he had turned out so different with only the addition of herself into his life.

"I remember when we tried to have sex the first time," Morrighan laughed, her fingers running through his hair as he moaned around her breast. "Your stupid ancestor was peeping in at us from his portrait."

Sirius chuckled, kissing the valley between her breasts as his thumbs caressed her breasts.

"Phineas Nigellus was scarred for eternity, darling. I'm so glad you got rid of him with Hermione, though. I hate the thought that someone other than me is looking at your gorgeous body, even if he is dead."

She laughed as he parted her legs, pulling her panties off her in one swift, well-practiced motion.

"Mmm," he moaned, burying his face between her thighs. "You still taste as good as you did that first time. So fucking delicious."

Morrighan didn't answer with words as he began lapping her up eagerly, but she simply whined, grinding against his face, desperate for more, more friction, more everything, until at last she came and he greedily drank up her juices, placing kisses back up her stomach and neck, kissing her lips last of all.

"I think that's all for tonight," he said gently, kissing her cheek softly and laying down beside her, his arms wrapping around her gently.

"But you-"

"I'm fine," he whispered. "You're tired. I'm not going to keep you up when you're so obviously about to fall asleep, darling."

She _was_ tired, she thought to herself as she breathed in the comforting scent of her husband.

"All right," she sighed. "Tomorrow night, then. I promise."

"I look forward to it, sweetheart," he said with a small chuckle as her eyes closed and she feel into a deep, dreamless sleep in his arms.

The following evening found Sirius as of yet sexually unsatisfied and the Black sitting around the table Kreacher had set with Fleur, Bill, and Ron, who looked especially sullen.

"So," Morrighan said conversationally toward the end of dinner, "I suppose you did something special for Christmas Eve."

"She made a lovely dinner," Bill said with a smile, taking his wife's hand.

From the look on Ron's face she had a guess that Fleur's cooking had paled in comparison with Molly's, but Morrighan had little sympathy for a boy who had recently been eating whatever Hermione could scrounge up and sleeping in a tent, magically enhanced though it was.

"I'm sure it was delicious," Morrighan said genially. "Fleur's always been wonderful at everything she's put her mind to."

"Makes a good Weasley," Sirius said with a smile, and Morrighan nodded as Bill and Fleur laughed. It was true, of course, that was a very Weasley-esque quality, the sort of stubbornness to keep doing something until they were good at it.

Ironically, Morrighan thought, Ron didn't seem to have that trait at all. He would try something if he didn't think he'd get teased to badly, or if he didn't have a choice, and then if he didn't excel right away he would try to quit.

"Ron," Bill said with a coaxing sort of voice. "How do you like your roast beef?"

"It's good," Ron said, his mouth mostly full with the meat in question, and Morrighan giggled slightly into her hand.

"Da!" Kitty said happily. "Da!"

Sirius blinked, looking down at his daughter, who was obviously trying to get his attention.

"Da!" Kitty said, pointing at the table. "Foo!"

Morrighan blinked.

"Is she talking?" Sirius said softly. "Is she talking to me?"

"Foo!" Kitty said insistently, and Morrighan could just picture her stamping her cute little foot at him someday in the very near future.

"All right, all right," Sirius said, grinning broadly. "It's coming, you silly little Kitty-Cat."

Morrighan smiled as Sirius got some of the mashed potatoes Kreacher had made and mixed a lot of butter in them, like Morrighan herself liked. As it turned out, the girls had their mother's taste in food, which Morrighan decided was a very good thing.

Kitty ate the food she was given happily and Sirius continued grinning like a fool as he fed her. Bill and Fleur were commenting on how remarkable it was that Kitty had started talking already.

"Well, she wasn't really talking," Morrighan sighed. "I mean, the words weren't fully formed. But still, I suppose it's sort of impressive."

It wasn't long after that when the girls started to get very sleepy from the food and all of the excitement of the day, so Sirius took off to turn them in, twins first, triplets after, leaving Morrighan sitting with Ron, Fleur, and Bill, who were all looking at her expectantly as though they thought she might do a dance of some kind.

"Um, so, I suppose you know that I know what you want, Ron?" Morrighan said softly, giving Bill and Fleur a significant look.

They got the hint quickly and Bill made excuses about wanting to show Fleur the house, the pair leaving Morrighan alone with Ron.

"I made a mistake," Ron admitted when the sound of footsteps on the stairs could no longer be heard. "I wanted to go back as soon as I left, Morrighan. It was terrible. I still hear Hermione begging me to stay in my nightmares. I just don't know how I'd find them again."

Morrighan nodded, knowing exactly how he'd get back, but also know that he needed to figure it out for himself, mostly. She could still give him hints and advice, though, she reasoned.

"I know," she said gently. "Just keep playing with the Deluminator and... and when you do get back follow your instincts and suck up to Hermione a lot. You really hurt her, Ron."

"I know," Ron moaned, head falling to his hands. "I know, and I know she doesn't want Harry and that Harry doesn't want her but it was that bloody Horcrux, Morrighan, it drove me mad!"

"I know," she soothed, patting his arm. "I know, and they know that, and when you go back you'll redeem yourself, Ron. You'll see. All right? Just be more careful. If you feel yourself slipping, talk to them. Don't just let it fester."

"Right," Ron sighed. "Yeah. I really get back?"

"And you bring them plenty of valuable information," she said gently. "Like Potterwatch, Ron. They don't know about Potterwatch yet."

"How's that valuable?" he asked, puzzled. "I mean, they already know what they're up to, don't they?"

"It's the hope," she assured him. "It's knowing that people believe in what they're doing, that they believe in Harry. You know how he gets when he feels alone."

Ron snorted in agreement and Morrighan made them some tea while Ron spilled out all of his emotions he'd kept bottled up while he was staying with Bill and Fleur, who weren't to know what Harry and Hermione were off doing.

"I was a bloody fool," Ron finally sighed, finishing the last dregs of his tea. "But I'm going to be back soon, right? I mean... really soon?"

"Well, you leave here tonight," Morrighan said softly, "but don't be surprised if you don't find them right away. It's... well, you'll know what I mean when you figure it out."

Ron gave her a questioning look, but she didn't answer, and Sirius came back with Bill and Fleur, anyway, who said it was time to go. Bill hugged Morrighan on the way out and whispered in her ear, "Did you tell him what he needed to know?"

"I think he knows more than he needs to get back," she hissed back, pretending to kiss him on the scarred cheek. "It's going to be okay, Bill, I promise."

Bill then gave her an actual kiss on the cheek, shook Sirius's hand, and Ron waved goodbye as Morrighan laced her fingers in Sirius's, hoping nothing she said would hurt the course of events.


	33. The Lull in the War

The night of Boxing Day, Sirius found Morrighan sitting by herself, smiling to herself.

"What's got you all happy?" he asked. "The girls are down. Kitty's not the only one talking now. Tiffany's starting to say things that sound quite a bit like words."

Morrighan nodded, still smiling.

"Ron made it back," she said happily. "And he saved Harry's life and they destroyed the Horcrux."

"With what?" Sirius said, puzzled.

"The sword of Gryffindor."

He raised his eyebrows.

"Where on earth did they find that?"

"It was at the bottom of a lake in the forest Hermione took them to."

His eyebrows went up even more and he said, "What are the odds that it was sitting at the bottom of a lake in the very forest they were in?"

Morrighan snorted, shook her head, and said, "No, Sirius. Severus put it there because Phineas Nigellus overheard Hermione saying where they were and told Severus. Then he led Harry there while he was on watch by using his Patronus to show where it was. And then Ron found Harry who was stupid and tried to get the thing out with the Horcrux still around his neck and it tried to drown him. And then they destroyed it."

"Now back up just a minute," Sirius said firmly. "Did you just say that Snape gave them the sword?"

"Yes."

"So we trust him?"

"I already told you, Sirius," Morrighan sighed. "We trust him. If he were to show up here tomorrow, I would give him a cup of tea and treat him with all the respect I always have, but he wouldn't do that because the risk to us and him alike would be too great, and we can't afford him to die early."

"But he's going to die," Sirius pointed out. "You didn't say he wasn't. So he's going to die in the war."

"Yes," Morrighan admitted. "Yes, he is."

"But why do we trust him?" Sirius groaned. "I mean, you keep telling me to trust him, but you won't say why!"

"Sirius, I will tell you," she assured him. "Ask me again in May. But for now, I need you to be contented with the information you do have, all right?"

He sighed and shook his head.

"I don't really want to, but I suppose it's really the only option I've got, isn't it?" he admitted.

"Yeah, basically," Morrighan answered cheekily.

Sirius laughed.

"Did you feed the pygmy puff?" he asked. Morrighan nodded. "And the owl?" She nodded again. He paused for a moment before saying, "You know, we really ought to name the puff ball. Now that the girls are starting to learn how to talk they're going to want to know what to call him."

"Whatever you'd like, dear," she sighed, snuggling against his chest.

"Oh, I see how it is," Sirius teased. "You're making me do all the hard work by being all adorable and sexy and... guh."

He leaned over and kissed her lips sweetly.

"You kill me, darling," he sighed. After a little while of kissing, he pulled back slightly, frowning just a bit. "Ron, he loves Hermione, doesn't he?"

Morrighan nodded, smiling slightly.

"And Hermione, she loves him too?"

"Yeah, she does, poor thing."

Sirius snorted.

"No kidding," he said heavily. "I suppose she's rather upset with him at the moment, then, coming back after leaving her like that?"

"Oh, she's furious," Morrighan said, eyebrows raised. "But she'll get over it. Not too long now and they'll have much bigger issues to consider. Stress and panic and the like tend to break down that sort of fury."

"Note to self," Sirius muttered, and Morrighan smacked him playfully, only to find him grinning down at her.

"Relax, darling," he said lovingly. "I'm not planning on inciting your fury anytime soon."

Maybe he wasn't planning it, but Morrighan knew as well as anyone else that fury could be incited without the least intention of doing anything of the sort. And Sirius was very good at doing things without meaning to do them and then wondering how it all happened when it came time to pay the price for his actions.

Like getting thrown into Azkaban because he hadn't had foresight to know that his plan was foolish.

"Well, they're going to be fine," Morrighan said firmly. "You'll see."

"Oh, I imagined so," he said kindly. "And I also imagine they'll make several bushy, auburn-haired children with a few hundred freckles apiece."

Morrighan smiled, kissing his neck.

"I suppose you'll have to wait and see, love, won't you?" Morrighan teased, wrapping her arms around his neck and snuggling against him.

"It's really too bad," he sighed.

"What is?" she asked, confused.

"It's the fact that my hair's black," he pointed out, pouting. "The likelihood of us getting a sweet little redhead like the mother is pretty low."

"Aw," she teased, kissing his cheek. "I suppose it will be fine. I happen to very much enjoy your pretty black hair." She ran her fingers through said hair, drawing a moan out of his lips and she watched his grey eyes darken. "Anyway," she whispered, "your cousin was a blonde, so it's not impossible, now, is it?"

Sirius shook his head, nuzzling her jaw with his nose.

"I just want them to all be as beautiful as you," he sighed. "I want to look at my girls and see your face looking back at me."

"Well, isn't that interesting?" Morrighan said cheekily. "I want to look at them and see _your_ face. I suppose there's a way we can come to an agreement."

"How's that, my love?" he whispered, his lips lingering over hers. She could taste his breath and she half-wanted to kiss him and forget all about whatever she'd been about to say.

"No matter which of us the girls end up looking like," she said sweetly, "you'll always have your face and I'll always have mine, so we can look at each other whenever we like."

"I like the sound of that," he sighed, kissing her.

Two days later, Morrighan was sitting, breastfeeding the twins, when Sirius came barging into the room, face frantic.

"I've just got news from Arthur," he said urgently. "Death Eaters sacked Xeno's house, he's being taken to Azkaban, but they say he's still alive. Why is he still alive? What happened, Morrighan? Everyone's panicking! Does it have to do with Luna?"

Morrighan sighed, kissed Aly's head (for the girl had begun crying at the sound of her father's raised voice), and looked up at her husband.

"Well," she said, "if you'd calm yourself down so you don't upset your daughters, I'll explain. All right?"

Sirius grumbled, but he sat down, taking Aly from his wife as Haydée began fussing, trying to get better access to her mother's breast. Once Haydée was situated and happily suckling, Morrighan turned her attention back to her husband and said, "Xenophilius Lovegood was given an ultimatum when Luna was taken. Firstly, he was to stop writing things in support of Harry. Secondly, if he was in contact with Harry, if he turned over Harry or something of value to them, he would get Luna back. He's been trying to trade in all sorts of worthless things that Xeno's convinced are valuable, but... well, only a Lovegood would think they were."

"So he got lobbed into prison because he's calling them in for nothing?" Sirius asked, confused.

"Not exactly," Morrighan sighed. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione went to ask him about a symbol they'd seen him wearing. He explained it to them, although they're not sure they believe his explanation. Anyway, he sent word to the Death Eaters that he had Harry and the trio had just enough time to get away, but Hermione made sure that they saw her and Harry before they escaped, so they knew he wasn't lying. Ron was hidden, so as far as anyone knows, he's still got spattergroit."

"Small blessings," Sirius grumbled. "I always liked Xeno. I'm not sure how I feel now, knowing what he tried to do to Harry."

"It's not his fault," Morrighan insisted. "What would you do if you'd lost me and all you had left were the girls and someone had taken them from you? Wouldn't you do everything in your power to get them back?"

Sirius was silent for a moment, frowning down at Aly as she snuggled against his shirt.

"I suppose you're right," he said stiffly, "but I wish you wouldn't say things like that. I'm not going to lose you, Morrighan. I can't."

"I know," she said quickly. "I'm just trying to get you to see it from Xeno's side. And they got away all right Sirius. There was no harm done to them, really. And maybe it will teach them to be more careful."

She knew it wouldn't, but Sirius needed things to cling to, even though he knew the story had to end well. He needed to think that Harry was okay, otherwise he felt like a terrible godfather.

Over the following months, Morrighan had to confess to Sirius that she didn't know much of what Harry and Ron and Hermione were up to. But she could reassure him that they were safe, and she made a point of making her face seen in the mirror several times over the course of those months so that Harry would know that someone was watching over them. Otherwise, she might not be able to send Dobby along when she needed to, wouldn't be able to save them from captivity in Malfoy Manor. She didn't want to think about what might happen if she failed at that.

"I just wish you tell me that they're fine."

"I can," she reminded him. "I can't tell you exactly what they're up to, but they're definitely fine."

"For now," Sirius grumbled, bouncing Kitty on his knee.

"Sirius, if you can't just have faith then please stop being so negative all the time around the girls," Morrighan sighed. "I don't want your negativity to affect them poorly."

Sirius apologized, but Morrighan knew he was still feeling very upset and negative, and she couldn't really blame him for it. He wanted so badly to know what was happening. He hadn't dealt well with being cooped up earlier in the war, either, but at least he had plenty of company.

The triplets were crawling all over the house, which meant their parents were always well occupied, between that and the constant care the twins required. Kreacher did his best, but even the youngest of house-elves would have difficulty keeping up five such young, rambunctious children.

"Our girls have started climbing," Sirius had said, unamused, when he'd discovered Kitty climbing the desk in the study. "Where in the name of Merlin did they get _that_?"

"Ah, that would be me," Morrighan had answered sheepishly. "I drove my parents mad, climbing on everything. I was curious."

"That would explain your shoulders," he had muttered.

Morrighan had unnaturally muscular shoulders and thighs for someone who never really exercised, although they'd become more toned once she and Sirius had begun having sex nearly every day. They both knew the muscles were genetic, not because of climbing on things, but he liked to tease her about them almost as much as he liked to marvel at them and kiss the skin that covered them, during sex.

When they got to the end of the time period in which Morrighan had no idea of what was going on, though, Sirius started to get more cheerful.

"You'll be able to tell me things again soon!" he said happily when she asked him what he was so happy for.

Morrighan sighed, hoping that when the battle came he wouldn't ask her to tell him everything that happened. She didn't even want to think about how anxious he would be during the battle, or how anxious she would be.

"Just change nappies," she snapped, not wanting to talk about the future anymore.

In March, they heard that it was the beginning of Easter Holidays, because Molly had been so excited, when she visited, that Ginny was coming home.

"It's been a hard year," she admitted, playing with Tiffany. "Not knowing if Ron and Hermione and Harry are all right, Bill and Charlie doing work for the Order, not having heard from Percy..."

"I know, it's hard, Molly," Morrighan said soothingly.

"And then Fred and George with that ridiculous radio show!" Molly sobbed. "They're bound to get caught!"

"I told you, they could do it here," Sirius assured her. "That couldn't be traced, then."

"I just wish they wouldn't do it at all," Molly whined. "I wouldn't want them to put you out-"

"Really, Molly, it's no trouble," Morrighan insisted quickly. "We'd love to have them. It's a very important thing for the war effort, you know."

"Is it really?" Molly said hopefully.

Morrighan assured her that it was.

"Well, all right," Molly sighed. "I'll pass it along to them. I'll bring Ginny to visit, as well, while she's home. She wants to see the twins badly!"

"I expect she wants to see all of them," Sirius laughed. "She's good with the girls."

"Yes, she is," Molly said.

Ginny visited briefly the day after she got back, playing with the girls and telling Morrighan and Sirius all about the changes at Hogwarts.

"It's like a prison, not a school," she explained. "The Carrows, the Death Eaters Snape hired, they make us torture each other for practice and discipline and whatnot. They make Umbridge look like a lightweight. Neville may not survive the year. And, well, you know that Luna didn't come back after Christmas. Is... is she all right?"

Morrighan chewed her lip for a moment, considering.

"Honestly," Morrighan said, "if Luna can ever be not okay, it would be now. But I can't say for sure that she's not, and I can promise that she will be in the very near future. I know that's not a very satisfactory answer-"

"No, it's fine," Ginny said sincerely. "I understand. I'm just satisfied to know that she's going to be okay. But I suppose she's the tough, type, Luna."

"She'd about have to be," Sirius said sadly. "From what I hear, Xeno got absolutely impossible and incapable when his wife died. Remus says that Luna's the strength of both of them."

Morrighan could certainly believe that.

Ginny had a good time with them, helping Morrighan with dinner while the girls climbed all over their father, fighting for the best position on his body as he laid on the floor, laughing.

"He's good with them, isn't he?" Ginny said wistfully. "Do you think Harry would be as good of a father?"

Morrighan's lips twitched as she fought a grin. Even though they weren't technically together, Ginny was smart enough to know what she wanted and not plan otherwise until she heard otherwise.

"I think he'd be better," Morrighan said wryly. "Sirius spoils the girls rotten."

Ginny was a gracious dinner guest, helped Morrighan put the girls to bed, and then shared a cup of tea with Sirius and Morrighan alone before heading back to the Burrow.

"Something's coming, isn't it?" Sirius said. "Soon, I think. You were very quiet today."

Morrighan just nodded, staring down at her tepid tea, wondering whether she ought to put more sugar in it or just toss it out.

"Is Ginny going to be all right?"

"Ginny's going to be fine," Morrighan assured him. "She's going to be fine and I'm going to make sure of it personally."

"You can't control everything, darling," he whispered, kissing her temple. "What are you going to do if things start getting out of your control?"

"They won't," Morrighan said firmly, her mind flashing to the image of her vision, the one where Bellatrix had hurt her right in front of a screaming, desperate Sirius. Morrighan kissed his forehead gently, pushing the thought from her mind.

That was what would happen if things spiraled out of her control, but she wouldn't let that happen. She couldn't. She never wanted to see that look on Sirius's face in real life. She couldn't bear that kind of pain.

He gave her a look that said he didn't know how she could be sure, but she pulled his two-way mirror from his bedside and looked into it, waiting, hoping to see Harry's face, to make sure he was okay.

"You know," Sirius whispered in her ear, "he knows it's you, I'm sure, when he sees you. He's smart."

"I doubt that," Morrighan said with a small, sad smile. "Harry wants to believe in miracles. If he sees feminine green eyes, he'll think they're his mother. When he saw blue ones, he thought they were Albus. And when he saw himself getting rid of the dementors he thought it was James. He's got too much hope."

"Or maybe," Sirius whispered, kissing her hair as she saw Harry's face appear in the mirror and then quickly put the mirror back on the bedside table, "he's got just enough hope."

She laughed, turning and throwing her arms around Sirius's neck, hugging herself tightly to him.

"Ever the optimists, you lot," she sighed, kissing his jaw. "Perhaps you're right. At any rate, things will be moving along soon, and when they do I'm afraid things might move quite fast."

"Not too fast?" he asked, running his fingers through her hair.

"No, I hope not," she sighed as his lips found her neck. "But if things turn out like I expect them to, we may have guests here for a while. Would that be all right?"

"Harry and Ron and Hermione guests?" he teased, running his tongue along the curve of her neck. He placed a kiss at her collarbone and said, "That would be absolutely lovely, darling."

She wondered if he would still think it lovely when they had a goblin, an elderly man, and a dying house-elf tagging along.


	34. An Unexpected Twist

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to my new reader, **_**TheeWhoLivesInTheWorldOfDrea ms**_**, who has favorited and followed this story! Thanks, and I hope that you all continue to read and review! This story is fueled entirely by your interest and my slightly-crazed mind!**

** -C**

Fred, Lee, Remus, and Kingsley were gathered in the sitting room, accepting tea from Morrighan as Lee tinkered with their equipment.

"So, how does this stuff all work?" Morrighan asked, sitting down at Remus's feet, regarding the broadcasting equipment with interest.

"Not very well," Fred teased.

"It works well enough!" Lee Jordan argued, indignantly. "Just because your fat head can't figure it out..."

While they younger men were arguing with each other good-naturedly, Remus explained the general workings of the broadcasting equipment, which still went right over Morrighan's head, but she nodded and smiled and pretended she understood so as not to embarrass herself.

"Right, the equipment's pretty sensitive," Lee said urgently, "so we're going to have to ask for you to not be in the room when we're broadcasting, as you're not in the segment. We don't want any more excess noise than absolutely necessary."

"That's fine," Morrighan said earnestly. She'd saved some Extendable Ears for the right occasion, and this would be it. "Is there anything else I can get you before you get started? I think we still have some cookies in the pantry."

"We're fine, thank you, Morrighan," Remus declined with a friendly smile. "We'll see you when we're done."

"Right," Morrighan said with a smile and a nod. "Of course. We'll be listening downstairs."

But there would be a delay if she did that, and Morrighan didn't want a delay, so as soon as she closed the door behind herself, she moved a bit down the hall and pulled the Extendable Ear out of her pocket.

"Want to charm the door, Fred? Wouldn't want a baby crying or something to get picked up on the broadcast."

"Sure, Lee."

Damn it!

Morrighan strained her ears, hoping against hope that whatever spell Fred was about to murmur would only work one way, but she felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped, dropping her end of the Ear and looking up at a smirking Sirius.

"Listening at doors, darling?" he said softly. "I thought you knew what they were going to say."

"I do," she pouted. "I just wanted to hear it in real time so I could know-"

"Darling, I promise you that nothing will be gained by you trying to eavesdrop on something you could hear on a less-than a minute delay in the other room. Tell me I'm wrong."

She couldn't, because he was absolutely right, but she pouted all the same as he laughed, scooping her up and carrying her into the other room where the triplets were playing on the floor with their blocks and stuffed animals, and pet pygmy puff.

Sirius began fiddling with the radio as Morrighan went over the events of the day in her mind, trying to think of about what time she would need to send Dobby.

"There's going to be blood tonight, Sirius," she whispered. "I don't know if it will be as much as with George's ear but... I'm going to need to you stay by me."

"Whose blood?" he asked, ignoring the radio to kneel at her feet, looking up at her with a worried face. "Morrighan, whose blood?"

She swallowed, then looked down at his hands, wrapping one of them up in both of hers.

"Probably a little of Harry's and Ron's. Definitely some of Hermione's. And I expect quite a lot of Dobby's."

He kissed her hands, petting them and trying to calm her.

"Why so much of Dobby's darling?" he asked. "Tell me what's going to happen."

"If I do what happened in the books," she said slowly, "I have to send Dobby to rescue the captives from their location. I know where they are and who's there and everything. But... But he'll die. Bellatrix will throw her knife as he's Disapparating away the last of the captives, and it will hit him. You know the knife? The cursed on?"

Sirius nodded.

"You won't be able to heal it," he whispered softly. "So what if-"

"If we get them," she said softly, not meeting his eyes, "if we go in his place... We die. Or at least, I die. I know that much. I Saw it, Bellatrix torturing me until I was like Alice Longbottom, and you watching, watching her kill me and screaming and... and I just... I just laid there, staring up at the ceiling with blank, dead eyes and I... I can't... Sirius," she sobbed, burying her face in his chest and shaking her head miserably.

"I'm not going to let that happen," he said firmly, although she could feel his tears leaking into her hair. "It's not going to happen. You're going to be safe. We just have to find a way to save Dobby, too."

"Sirius, I don't think we can," Morrighan said miserably.

"If Mistress would permit," Kreacher croaked. Sirius and Morrighan both jumped, surprised, thinking themselves alone. "It would be possible that Kreacher could go with Dobby, and, knowing the danger, prevent the death of Kreacher or Dobby or Mistress this day. If Mistress and Master would permit."

Sirius looked more surprised than Morrighan felt at the offer.

"Kreacher, you don't have to do this," he told the elf gently. "If something were to happen to you..."

"If Mistress would order me to return everyone safely," Kreacher croaked.

Morrighan understood.

"Winky," she said firmly, calling their other elf.

Winky appeared on command.

"Mistress," Winky squeaked happily.

"Winky, I'd like for you to bring Dobby to me," Morrighan said firmly. "Can you do that?"

"Right away, Mistress!" Winky exclaimed, and not a moment later Sirius and Morrighan were surrounded by three house-elves.

"Mistress Black," Dobby said kindly. "Master Black. Harry Potter has spoken great things of the Blacks to Dobby."

"That's very kind of you to say, Dobby," Morrighan said nervously. How to phrase it? "Dobby, Harry Potter said that he might need your assistance today. Yours and Kreacher's. Would you be willing to stay here until I hear from him, so that I might send you both when you're needed?"

"It would be an honor, Mistress Black," Dobby said, bowing low and taking off what Morrighan decided was probably one of the 'hats' Hermione had knit several years prior.

Winky was set to help Sirius clean out bedrooms and Dobby and Kreacher were asked to get started on dinner, and Morrighan set about cleaning the kitchen, hoping the girls would stay asleep for just a little while longer.

"Morrighan?" Remus asked, poking his head into the kitchen. "We're leaving."

"Oh, just a moment," she said, hurrying into the pantry, pulling out a pound cake she'd made for him and Tonks. "I made this," she told him, coming back out into the kitchen, where Dobby and Kreacher were getting dinner laid out on the table. "It's for you and Tonks. Give her my love, will you?"

"Of course," Remus said, smiling. "She's blowing up like a balloon. I just... I just wish her father could be there for her."

Morrighan nodded knowingly, hugged Remus, and decided not to tell him that everything would be all right, because she didn't want to feel like she'd lied. She could tell him the child would be fine, but she thought she might have said that before, and repeated things felt less true the more one repeated them. So she just hugged him for a moment and then let go, reminding him to pass her love on to Tonks and watching him leave with a tight smile and a wave.

All smiles were tight smiles lately, it seemed.

She kept the mirror out, watching, waiting, knowing that any minute, Harry's face would appear, and he would ask for help, nay, demand help, from the person he saw on the other end. Morrighan's hand shook as she set the mirror down on the table, going about setting it for dinner while the house-elves put the food out.

"I think the girls are starting to wake up," Sirius said, kissing Morrighan's cheek. "I'll go get them."

Morrighan was just about to say no, to tell him to distract them instead, when she saw Harry's face in the mirror.

She rushed over, looking down at his features, which were still suffering from the Stinging Hex. She held her finger to her lips to keep Sirius from saying anything. He'd just opened his mouth, likely to ask why Harry's face looked like that.

Harry asked for help, frustrated as she knew he would be, and then his face disappeared.

"Dobby," she said, turning to the elves, "Kreacher. They're in the cellar in Malfoy Manor. Go there. Bring them all here, safe as you can, all right?"

"Yes, Mistress," they chorused.

"Oh, and Kreacher," she said. "I want both of you back here, alive."

The elves signified that they understood her order, and she began to shake the moment they disappeared, clutching Sirius's shirt as he held her tightly to his chest.

"They're going to be fine," she repeated to herself. "Nobody's going to die. It's going to be fine."

Not long after, Kreacher and Dobby returned briefly, with Luna, Dean, and Ollivander in tow.

"Merlin!" Sirius yelped at the sight of them all. The elves hurried away to get the other four and Morrighan turned her attentions to the newcomers while Sirius collected himself, setting tea before each of them and settling Mr. Ollivander in the nearest chair.

"Sirius, they're coming soon," Morrighan said firmly. "Do you think you can get Mr. Ollivander here up to one of the spare bedrooms I prepared on the second floor and tend to his health while we wait? I'll send Winky for you if I need you."

"You'll need me," he said, grabbing Mr. Ollivander's tea in one hand, then supporting the weight of the dwindled old man with his other side. "There's going to be blood. You'll need me."

Morrighan growled at his back, knowing he was smirking as he followed her orders, and she checked over Dean and Luna, whose injuries were minor.

"It's very nice to see you again," Luna said sweetly, although her usual brightness was dulled by her obviously stressful imprisonment. "I take it this is a secure location, then? I remember your name being on the lists for questioning."

"Yes, it was," Morrighan said gently as she healed a cut over Dean's eyebrow. "But this is the safest place in all of Britain. It's harbored more than one fugitive, and we've got plenty of room. The girls only take up one room between the five of them, they're all so small and..."

"Oh, can we see them?" Luna asked happily.

Morrighan couldn't help but think that if Luna didn't look just like she'd been held in a cellar for months, she would seem as though she was simply over for tea.

"Well, they're asleep right now," Morrighan said with a small smile, "but you'll be here for a while, so yes, you'll certainly get to see them."

"Oh, good," Luna said happily. "I was so disappointed that I didn't get to see any of them during the wedding. But I understand that you didn't want to put them in danger. That was very smart, in hindsight."

There wasn't any hindsight involved, and Morrighan's smile slipped off her face.

The elves weren't back yet. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were still at the Malfoy Manor. And Griphook, of course, but her primary concern had to be the trio. She could figure out some way to get the war won without Griphook, but there was no victory without Harry.

"How's everything in here, darling?" Sirius asked, sweeping into the room. "Ollivander's resting. Any guesses how old he is?"

"At least as old as Dumbledore was," Morrighan said with a shrug, then she leapt backward with a squeak.

Kreacher, Dobby, Griphook, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had suddenly appeared between Morrighan and Sirius in the kitchen, sword of Gryffindor in Harry's hand.

"Oh, thank Merlin," Morrighan gasped, but then she saw Bellatrix's knife sticking out of Hermione's arm.

The girl whimpered, clutching Ron's shirt with twitching fingers, and the Weasley boy supported her weight entirely, his arms around her waist and resting her against him.

"Please," he said hoarsely. "Please."

"Sirius, deal with the blood," Morrighan said weakly, pointing at Hermione and Griphook. "Have Ron help with Hermione. I need... Harry. I need to talk with Harry. Harry..."

"Right," he muttered, walking with her upstairs to the room she'd set aside for him. They set the sword against a wall.

"You changed things again, didn't you?" he asked her, not looking at her.

That was all right, because she wasn't looking at him, either. They were both looking at the sword to avoid facing each other.

"Yes," she whispered. "I was distressed about Dobby and Kreacher offered to go and make sure nothing happened to him, for my sake."

"What would have happened to him?" Harry asked in a tight voice.

"He would have died," she said softly. "It's funny, his death didn't bother me so much, reading about it, but I was terrified."

"There's something you're not telling me," Harry said firmly.

Morrighan's mind flashed to the image of Bellatrix torturing her, Sirius screaming for it to stop...

"Nothing important," Morrighan insisted. "Anyway, he's alive. I can't do that again, though, Harry, you realize. I can't save any more lives. I've already changed too much."

"I know," he said with a nod, sitting down on the bed. "Will Hermione be all right?"

"She'll have scars," Morrighan said, sitting on the floor with her back pressed to the wall. "The knife was cursed. But you know Hermione, she's tough. She'll be okay."

"You don't do well with blood, do you?" he asked casually. "Sirius told me about George's ear."

Morrighan snorted. Of course Sirius couldn't keep that to himself. Well, Remus was there, and Harry was the only other person Sirius would have told. She supposed that wasn't so bad.

"Yeah," she said. "It's complicated. Anyway, this should be the last of the blood for us for a while."

"You're not saving anyone else," Harry said, nodding. "It's coming soon, isn't it? I can feel that something big is coming."

She nodded, glancing back at the sword.

"You're probably going to have a lot of questions for me," she admitted. "And I won't block you out entirely. I'll let you ask yes-or-no questions, and I'll even over-answer some of them, but I reserve the right not to answer some things, all right? Because some things are going to happen without my helping them along, and I don't want him..."

She froze.

Morrighan had very nearly said that she wouldn't want Severus's death to have been for nothing, if she could have told Harry the truth just as easily, and he gave her a curious look.

"Never mind," she said quickly.

Thankfully, Harry didn't press the issue, although he looked as though he wanted to.

"I suppose you have people you want to talk with," Morrighan said softly. Harry nodded. "Who should you go to talk with first?"

Harry frowned at the sword, thinking. Morrighan knew what he was thinking: Hallows or Horcruxes? She wanted to tell him that it wouldn't make any difference, whoever he chose, but she said nothing, simply watching him consider.

"I won't start until Hermione's well enough," he said slowly. "So I'll check on her first. Then I think I'll start with Griphook."

Morrighan nodded.

"Good choices," she sighed. "You should go check on her. I'm going to make some tea. And maybe some sort of snack? I'm sure you're quite hungry, and Luna and Dean looked starved."

Harry nodded, thanked her, and then followed the hallway, heading straight to the door Ron was going into, which had to be where Hermione was. Morrighan sighed and went down to the kitchen again.

Sirius was washing his hands.

"Hey," he said with a small, tight smile. "She's going to be okay. Scars, of course, but she'll be all right. Tough girl, that one."

"That she is," Morrighan sighed, sitting down beside her husband. "Harry and Ron are up with her now."

"What were you coming down here for?" he asked, slipping his hand into hers lovingly.

"I was going to make some tea and get out a snack for the kids. Not the girls, I mean... you know."

"Who's the other boy?" Sirius asked curiously, flicking his wand to start the kettle and kissing her hand before dropping it to get up and get some food out of the pantry.

"Dean Thomas," she said sadly. "He thinks he's Muggle-born."

"Thinks?" he asked, frowning. "Is he not?"

Morrighan hesitated.

"You promise you won't say anything to him?" she asked firmly.

"Darling," Sirius sighed, "when have I gone against you when it came to your knowledge of future events?"

She had to agree that he'd yet to do so, so she nodded, making sure they were still alone before whispering, "He lives with his Muggle mother and his step-father, who's also a Muggle. His father was a wizard, killed during the war... He never told his wife what he was, to protect her, and she never learned how he died."

"That's terrible," Sirius sighed. "Things like that happened more than I care to think about. He'll never know the truth?"

"No," Morrighan sighed. "Never. And it's a shame. Maybe... maybe someday I'll tell him, but not before the war's over, I think."

"So where does this leave us?" he asked, pouring tea into the cups she'd laid out. "I mean, with all these kids here, contacting Ron's family so that they go into hiding-"

"Oh, no, I forgot to contact the Weasleys!" Morrighan whispered, horrified.

"Relax, love," he told her gently. "I sent Winky when I was getting Ollivander situated. They're at Muriel's and safe."

"Oh, thank Merlin," she sighed, hugging him tightly. "What would I do without you?"

"It doesn't matter," Sirius said, kissing the top of her head and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "You're never going to be without me again."


	35. Counting Down

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to **_**ZabuzasGirl**_**, my newest reader and reviewer whose enthusiasm for this story has prompted the starting of this chapter. I hope it is to your liking, **_**ZabuzasGirl**_**. And the rest of you lovely readers. :D Please review, it makes the chapters come faster, I swear!**

** -C**

Their guests had been at Grimmauld Place for a few days when Morrighan began to notice that the trio would shut themselves up in Griphook's room for hours on end.

It had begun. They were planning to break into Gringotts.

She didn't have too much time to dwell on it, though. There were the girls, of course, caring for Ollivander and Griphook, tending Hermione's slowly healing wounds, and entertaining Luna and Dean... and of course Sirius, who was the biggest attention hog of all.

Winky, Kreacher, and Dobby all stayed at Grimmauld Place, which Morrighan assured by sending Dobby to Severus with a coded message requesting that he enter into the service of her family, which was granted, of course. She thought that it would be the last contact she had with Severus, and she saw it as almost a parting gift. And she cried.

Morrighan was crying often, it seemed. Sirius did his best to brighten her up, and Luna took a lot of the strain of, caring for the girls whenever she could, but Morrighan was having regular nightmares and hardly getting any proper sleep. She was seeing the dead face of all the people she knew she was unable to save, all the people she couldn't do anything for. Remus, Tonks, Severus, Colin Creevey (whose face was still a mystery to her)... Fred.

When she'd had a nightmare about Fred's death, Sirius woke her. She'd been crying, screaming, and thrashing out in her sleep, screaming Fred's name. Sirius woke her up, held her, petted her, did his best to calm her.

"Everything's going to be fine," he lied. "Everything's going to be fine."

Maybe he believed it, but Morrighan knew it was all lies. She knew Remus would come to tell them about the baby, and how could she look him in the face and smile, knowing what she knew? Was there anything she could have said or done along the way to save him or Tonks or both?

But Dumbledore was right, and she needed to let things be the way they were supposed to be. The fact that she could cause changes that might be dangerous to the whole of wizard-kind, that she might unravel time or reality by the changes she caused...

"At some point," she told Sirius, "we're going to have to get word to Aberforth, give him a warning..."

"We'll send Dobby with a letter, then," Sirius said with a shrug. "He'd be glad to do it, and a house-elf sending a message is less conspicuous than a Patronus."

Morrighan knew Sirius was right, and she'd already begun drafting that letter, wanting to be sure to appeal to Aberforth properly, so that he understood who she was, what was about to happen, and what was needed of him.

Arthur had taken Dean, Luna, and Ollivander to Muriel's at Morrighan's request on a mornign in the beginning of April, and Morrighan had been thinking that the house had been quiet most of the day, even with the trio and Griphook. She was peeling potatoes for dinner, which she'd mostly finished making, when she heard someone at the door. Morrighan frowned, looking at Sirius, who pulled out his wand and went creeping up the stairs.

"Relax and put your wand away, Sirius," called a familiar voice from the hall. "It's me, Remus! I'm a werewolf, married to your cousin Nymphadora, and your wife is going to want to see me right now!"

Morrighan squealed, dropping the knife and potato she'd had in her hands, watching the stairs as Remus came rushing down them looking flushed and out of breath.

"It's a boy!" he said excitedly, hugging Morrighan and Sirius at once. "We've named him Ted, after Dora's father!"

Hermione shrieked.

"Wha-? Tonks - Tonks has had the baby?"

"Yes, yes, she's had the baby," Remus shouted, and these words brought cries of excitement, congratulations, and relief. Morrighan and Hermione were squealing their congratulations and Ron looked completely flabbergasted.

"A boy, then," Morrighan said, helping Remus to a seat at the table because he seemed so dazed with joy that he wouldn't be able to properly stand for long.

"You and Sirius will be the godparents, please?" Remus asked, clasping both her hands in his eagerly.

Morrighan blinked.

That wasn't how it was supposed to happen. He was supposed to ask Harry.

But then, he'd asked Harry because Sirius hadn't been alive. It made more sense to have actual adults be the godfather to his child, especially with a war on, especially adults who lived in the most secure house in Britain and had three house-elves.

"Are you sure you want us?" Sirius laughed. "We've already got five of our own, you know, mate."

"You, yes, of course - Dora quite agrees, no one better-"

Morrighan shrugged at Sirius. He shrugged back.

"Sure, if that's what you want," she said.

Sirius was fetching firewhiskey and Morrighan recognized the need to keep him there, as Fleur and Bill had in the book. So she asked him to stay for a drink.

"I can't stay long, I must get back," Remus said, still grinning like an idiot. "Thank you, thank you, Padfoot."

Sirius had filled all the glasses and they raised them in a toast.

"To Teddy Remus Lupin," Remus said happily, "a great wizard in the making!"

"Who does he look like?" Harry asked with a grin as he took a drink.

"Tonks," Morrighan said without even thinking about it. "His hair's changing colors already. You'll have to bring pictures along, Remus. Come on, another round, Sirius."

Remus didn't protest as Sirius filled his glass once more, and then proceeded to fill the others as they sat happily. Morrighan noted that Griphook slipped upstairs surreptitiously when it was thought that no one was looking, although she thought Harry had noticed as well.

"No... no... I really must get back," Remus sighed at last as Sirius went to fill his glass a third time. He pulled his travelling cloak on and hugged Morrighan one more.

"Good-bye, good-bye - I'll try and bring some pictures in a few days' time - they'll all be so glad to know that I've seen you-"

He hugged all the women once more and shook the hands of all the men, and then gave Sirius and Morrighan another hug apiece, kissing the babies on the forehead as he left the kitchen to return to his wife and child.

"Congratulations, Morrighan, Sirius," Ron said rambunctiously. "Godparents!"

"Thanks, Ron," Morrighan said happily. "Harry, I'm just going to say right now, be careful with Griphook. Bill could give you a better warning than I can, but they're a different breed and they play by different rules. Don't forget Ludo Bagman. Be careful with him, and expect things to go differently than you plan."

Harry nodded, and she thought she saw him pale slightly at the warning, but they went on the rest of the night discussing the baby and nothing much else.

Remus did come back with pictures, and Morrighan sat down with him after the others had all gone to sleep. Sirius was putting the girls in bed, and then he joined them.

"I feel so torn," Remus sighed. "I feel like I'm the happiest I've ever been in my life, but at the same time I'm terrified. Is this what being a father is supposed to be like or-?"

"Yes," Morrighan and Sirius said together, sharply. Then the three of them shared a smile.

"It's hard to believe that just two years ago we were sitting in this same room," Remus sighed. "I think at the time Morrighan was waiting for Harry to have a vision of Sirius being tortured and Sirius and I were blissfully unaware."

"I also seem to recall that we were all blissfully unaware that Morrighan was carrying triplets at the time," Sirius snorted. "The luckiest thing that could have happened to us, that. In so many ways."

Morrighan couldn't help but smile to hear Sirius say that, knowing that he was both talking about becoming a father and Morrighan using her pregnancy to save his life.

"It's going to be fine, Remus," Sirius said with a smile. "You'll see."

And when Remus turned to Morrighan with questioning eyes, Morrighan just swallowed and forced a smile, forcing herself to nod in affirmation of Sirius's empty words.

In a way it was exactly right. Harry would defeat Voldemort. That was going to be fine. But nothing would be all right. Nothing else was going to be fine. So many people, so many people Morrighan felt so deeply for, were going to die, and then there would be the long rebuilding process...

On the morning of the first of May, Morrighan made tea for herself and the trio. Sirius was still sleeping when she rolled out of bed, kissed his forehead gently, and pulled the covers back over his naked body. The girls would sleep for another few hours. The elves had been told that they weren't needed until the girls woke up.

She wanted to see them off on their way to Gringotts, and she didn't want anyone to interrupt or see them. She'd already had Dobby take the letter to Aberforth.

Everything was in place. By the same time the next morning, everything would be over and rebuilding would begin.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were surprised when they saw Morrighan sitting at the kitchen table with a light breakfast made for them and four cups of tea out.

"I suppose you knew what we were doing, of course," Hermione finally said, pulling out the Polyjuice Potion. "We're not coming back when we're done. We can't."

"I know," Morrighan said softly. "I would never have asked you to. You'll see very soon where you need to go, Harry. Trust your instincts from here on out, because the end is closer than you might think."

Harry nodded, and they ate breakfast, thanked me, and Hermione took the Polyjuice Potion when Griphook came down to the kitchen to fetch them.

Morrighan tried not to flinch at the sight of Bellatrix Lestrange standing in her kitchen, but the others were too preoccupied with their plans to take any notice of it. She thought about telling them good luck or goodbye as they left, but she bit her tongue.

She would just congratulate them when the battle was done and say how proud she was of them all. That would be enough. It would go better with her apologies for the losses.

She was on her second cup of tea by the time Sirius came down to the kitchen to find her staring at the table absently.

"They're gone, aren't they?" he asked softly.

Morrighan nodded.

"We're going to be hearing from people soon, won't we?"

She nodded again.

"I'll make breakfast, then," he sighed, moving to start making French toast like she'd taught him, like her mother used to make it, when Morrighan was in her own reality and eating her mother's cooking.

She wanted to kiss him then and there when she saw him cracking eggs and scrambling for milk and cinnamon, but she didn't have the energy to get out of her chair.

Sirius fed her breakfast, the elves got the girls up and helped Sirius feed them, and Morrighan just sat there, staring at the table, praying to every god she could think of that she'd done everything she could, that Harry was going to be all right and that the war would turn out the way it was supposed to. And perhaps if a few people didn't die who died in the books, well, she wouldn't be sorry about it.

It was several hours later when Remus, Kingsley, Lee, and the twins showed up at Grimmauld Place wanting to do a quick show.

"I don't know if you've heard," Fred said excitedly. "But a dragon escaped from Gringotts, and rumor has it Harry broke in and then rode out on the dragon!"

"Broke in for what?" Sirius said, trying not to smirk, Morrighan knew.

"We don't know," Remus shrugged. "Probably something for the mission Dumbledore gave him. Morrighan probably knows. Don't worry," he added quickly. "We won't ask you to make a statement. Lee, have you finished that yet?"

Lee nodded.

"Just a few more tweaks and we'll be good to go," Lee said happily.

"We'll get out of your hair, then," Morrighan said pointedly. "Sirius, why don't you go put the girls down for a nap and I'll help Winky and Kreacher make tea for when they finish the broadcast."

Sirius took off right away to get the girls and Morrighan flashed Remus one more smile before she turned on her heel and made her way down to the kitchen, where tea was eagerly being readied by the house elves.

"It's going to be a long night," she murmured to Sirius, who came up behind her where she sat when he came into the kitchen and began massaging her shoulders.

"Is there anything I can do to make it better?" Sirius asked, digging his thumbs into a knot at the base of her neck on the right. She moaned.

"I don't know," she sighed. "Honestly, I'm probably going to cry a lot, and I think I just want to curl up under a blanket with you once they leave and let Winky watch the girls while we just talk and hold each other."

"Sounds lovely," he whispered softly against her ear.

When the broadcast was done, the five of them came down to the kitchen for tea, and George asked, "So did they really escape on a dragon?"

Morrighan snorted and nodded.

"Wow," Lee sighed. "Harry gets to do all of the coolest stuff."

She frowned.

"No, Lee," she said softly. "It's really not that cool when you have to do it, or die, or watch the people around you die. That sort of takes all the fun out of it."

"Right," Lee muttered, a bit deflated. "I just meant... Never mind, you're right, of course."

An awkward silence descended on them, and Morrighan wished she hadn't said anything at all.

Remus and Fred were exchanging looks over the table, like they were both eagerly awaiting something, and she had a feeling she knew what they were awaiting, and her heart pounding wildly as Fred stuck his hand in his pocket.

And then, just as she thought, Fred yelped with surprise and pulled what looked like a Galleon out of his pocket. Then he whooped with excitement.

"This is it! It's happening, Remus!"

Morrighan grasped Sirius's hand tightly, and he squeezed back in response.

"What's happening?" Sirius asked.

"Harry's at Hogwarts, Neville says!" Fred said excitedly. "It's time to fight! We're going to take back the school!"

Oh, it would be so much more than that, Morrighan thought mournfully. Fred had no idea what a great battle they were about enter, but she just smiled slightly at them.

"Right, let's round up the D.A. and sympathizers," George said to Lee and Fred. "Kingsley, Remus, you're going to gather the Order and sympathizers?"

"Of course," Kingsley rumbled. "I'm going right away."

"I need to stop by and let Dora and her mother know what's happening so they don't worry," Remus said, fidgeting nervously.

"Are you coming?" Lee asked Morrighan and Sirius excitedly.

"No," Morrighan said softly. "I can't. There would be too much temptation to change things I shouldn't."

Sirius shook his head as well.

"I'm going to be needed here," he told them gently. "But go and give them hell from me, Mooney."

The five men shook their hands and Morrighan and Sirius saw them out.

"How many of them will die tonight?" Sirius asked softly when the door was closed behind the guests.

"Two," Morrighan sighed. "Let Dobby and Kreacher and Winky know that they have our permission to go and fight if they so choose. I'm going upstairs. Join me when you've done it, please?"

"Of course, love," Sirius said, kissing her lips gently.

She made her way upstairs slowly, not wanting to think about what a long night it was going to be as she pulled off her clothes and climbed into bed, pulling the blankets up over her head and staring at the blanket in the darkness. Several minutes later, she heard Sirius come into the room and then there was a moment of silence before she heard the rustling that could only be him taking off his clothes, as she had done. Maybe he'd noticed the pile of clothes at the foot of the bed.

The blankets lifted around her and Sirius's naked body became visible, crawling under the covers beside her and wrapping his arms around her, letting the blankets fall over their heads as he cuddled her close.

"So many people are going to die," she whispered, hugging him tightly, letting his lips settle on her neck tenderly. "They're all going to die, Sirius, and there's nothing I can do about it."

Sirius nodded.

"Dobby and Kreacher went off to fight, but Winky chose to stay and take care of the girls. She thinks you're ill."

"I feel ill," Morrighan whimpered, and Sirius kissed her forehead gently. "I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep tonight, not when I know what's happening at Hogwarts."

"You're afraid of something," he whispered, brushing his fingers through her hair.

Morrighan nodded, because she had finally realized her biggest fear since she'd saved Sirius's life.

"There will be a moment when Harry needs to do a monumental task," she said. "And the memories of you and his parents and... and someone else who dies and I'm worried that he might not have the strength without you."

"He will," Sirius assured her. "He's Harry. He will."

And Morrighan prayed that Sirius was right.


	36. Closure

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to **_**Saltey**_**, whose review got me all pumped up to let y'all know what happens during the battle. HERE WE GO! Be prepared to be bombarded by feels of all sorts.**

** In other news, I published my novella! The info (and a coupon code!) are on my profile, so go check it out! **_**Lizaluvsdoggies**_** got her copy... Just like on here, I'd love it if you read it AND reviewed it, so other people who are less familiar with my writing can gage if this is something they'd want to read. Many thanks!**

** -C**

It was midnight when Morrighan began to cry inconsolably.

Sirius tried everything, but every time she blinked she could see their faces, hollow dead eyes, and she knew there was nothing she could do. She spent an hour vomiting and dry heaving virtually without pause and Sirius held back her auburn hair gently, whispering soothing words of comfort, words she knew couldn't be true.

Fred would be dead. Remus would be dead. Colin Creevey, who she hadn't met... Severus...

Tonks.

It was maybe a quarter past one when Tonks showed up at Grimmauld Place with Teddy, tears in her eyes but a firm look of resolution on her face.

Sirius had pulled on a robe to go see who was there, and he called up to Morrighan to come down. Morrighan sighed, pulled on a robe, and came downstairs to find Sirius accepting Teddy from Tonks's arms.

"I need to go to Hogwarts," Tonks said wildly. "Will you look after him while I'm fighting?"

That may have been what Tonks said, but what Morrighan heard was, "Will you look after him while I go die?"

Morrighan burst into tears again, looking at that little boy who would grow up playing with her little girls and all the other children she and Sirius would have. Sirius looked concerned as Tonks's eyes grew wide.

"Of course we will," he assured her. "Winky will help. Morrighan's... Well, forgive her, Dora, she's been distraught since the battle started. You know how it must be, knowing everything that's happening and not being able to do anything..."

Tonks nodded, kissing Morrighan's cheek.

"I'll kill a few Death Eaters for you," Tonks said with a grin. "Maybe I'll even get Bellatrix."

And that was too much for Morrighan, who hugged Tonks quickly, nodded, sharply, and rushed back upstairs to throw off the robe and crawl under the covers again.

Sirius climbed into the bed beside her and whispered, "Tonks left. I tried to talk her out of going, but you know her. Anyway, Teddy's in the nursery with the girls. Winky's playing with them."

Morrighan didn't answer, just stared at his chest blankly, too exhausted to even nod that she'd heard him.

Finally, Sirius sighed and whispered, "He's staying here, isn't he? I mean, he's not going to leave here, he's going to be raised by us... isn't he?"

Once again, Morrighan couldn't find words to choke out at him, but her eyes filled with tears again and Sirius just held her tightly to his chest, stroking her hair comfortingly.

She didn't know exactly what time it was when she fell asleep in his arms, but he woke her up at about six in the morning.

"The twins are hungry, darling, or I would have let you sleep," Sirius whispered.

At first, Morrighan wasn't sure why he was being gentle with her. She'd gotten halfway to the nursery, however, when she heard the unfamiliar cry of what could only be Teddy, and tears filled her eyes. She stood rooted to the spot in the hall, shaking her head and crying.

Sirius came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her tightly.

"Shh," he soothed, kissing her cheek. "It's going to be all right, love."

"No," she gasped. "No, they're gone, Sirius! They're gone and I'm not his mother and I-"

"Shh, calm down, darling," Sirius said gently, smoothing her hair and hugging her tightly. "Teddy will know who his mother is when he gets older, but until then he'll be all right. You're a wonderful mother and I'll try to be a good enough father. But right now, he needs someone and the girls need someone, and you're the only someone here who can help."

It was like walking in a dream, finishing the steps that took her to the sound of the crying babies, all distraught by their hunger. Morrighan started with her girls, not knowing what she would do for Teddy, looking nervously as his cradle as Haydée and Aly nursed. When the girls had had their fill and were gurgling happily in Sirius's arms, Morrighan carefully lifted the crying Teddy to her breast.

Her fears were unfounded. He suckled the breast before him indiscriminatingly, not caring that the breast belonged to someone other than his mother.

"I'm going to take care of you," she whispered to the small child. "You won't know it now, but when you're older I'll tell you about your parents and how much I loved them and how terrified I am right now, but for now I'm just going to take care of you like you're mine. Okay?"

Teddy gurgled happily around her nipple and Sirius leaned forward with his daughters in his arms, kissing Morrighan's forehead gently.

"Everything's going to be all right," he whispered. "I promise. I'm going to figure out what's going on, see if I can get ahold of anybody. You'll be okay with Teddy for a bit? Winky's with the triplets."

Morrighan nodded. She sat with Teddy, nursing him until he'd had his fill of milk, which she was glad of because her breasts had begun to ache terribly. She'd forgotten how much more work it was nursing three than two, and Teddy was more fierce in suckling than any of her girls were. Once he'd finished, she'd put her shirt back in place and walked downstairs with the baby on her hip, anxious to get news from Sirius.

He was feeding the triplets in the kitchen when she found him, and there were a few others sitting there, having tea.

"Harry!" she gasped, surprised. "Hermione!"

"Ron's with his family," Hermione said grimly. "Fred... well, you already know, don't you?"

Morrighan nodded, setting Teddy down in one of the high chairs.

"Tonks dropped him over before she went to the battle," Morrighan said bitterly. "Even knowing it was coming didn't make it any easier." She paused, then looked down at Harry. "Severus," she whispered. "Did he... was he in pain?"

Harry frowned, and looked down at the table.

"I think he probably was," Harry admitted. "He seemed to be. But he... he gave me the memories and... he told me to thank you. He tried writing you before he died, you know. When he was getting ready to take the sword to us, I saw a bunch of letters in the waste bin, all meant for you. He was grateful that you told him that he would be remembered well, and not as he saw himself."

Morrighan couldn't help but smile, no matter how sad she felt. Severus may have died in physical pain, but he was more at peace when he went to his death than he had ever been in life.

"I'm glad," she finally said. "So... now what?"

Harry shrugged.

"I don't know what's going to happen," he sighed. "There's a lot of things to think about. Hogwarts needs rebuilding. There's all the people who couldn't go to school this year, and nobody took exams. Professor McGonagall doesn't seem to want to be Headmistress, at least not past the first year. Of rebuilding. And we've got to get jobs and figure out how to rebuild the wizarding world and the peace."

Morrighan nodded.

"It will all work out eventually," she said with a nod. "It's just strange, not knowing how we get from point a to b. I've known everything up until now with very few surprises, but..."

"Is that how the books ended, then?" Hermione asked. "The battle and then... nothing?"

"Not exactly," Morrighan admitted, putting Teddy in the high chair that Winky had just pushed up to the table. "There was an epilogue, nineteen years later."

Ron groaned, and they all looked at him, curious.

"You can't just tell me that you know what happens to me twenty years from now when I know you can't tell me what it is!" he whined.

And they all began to laugh, loud and long and fully like they'd never laughed properly before, and Morrighan couldn't believe how incredibly good it felt, laughing like that. There were so many things hanging over all of their heads that would have to be cleaned up in the days and years to come, but in that moment the laughs fell so deliciously from their lips that the very thought of living without those laughs seemed absurd, and there was a strong sense they all shared that worrying about other things could wait for other times.

Sorting out all the wills and funerals was less than easy, but Morrighan and Sirius worked out a schedule so that Andromeda could have plenty of time with her grandson, as well as her cousins children. Harry visited frequently, as well, and spoiled all six children rotten as often as he could get away with it. The Weasleys held a memorial for Fred at the Burrow and buried him on their property, not the only war martyr who wasn't buried at Hogwarts.

Remus and Tonks were buried at Hogwarts, as Sirius, Morrighan, and Andromeda all agreed the couple would have wanted. Morrighan arranged for Kreacher and Dobby to be buried there as well, as they had both fallen in the battle. She convinced Minerva McGonagall to bury Severus beside Albus, and she visited his grave at the mass funeral on the grounds for all those who would be buried there, and the memorial put up to honor the battle. Kingsley had accomplished it all so quickly that Morrighan could scarce believe it, but then, they were wizards.

"I'm so sorry, Severus," Morrighan whispered, touching the gravestone. "I wish I could have saved you, too."

But his gravestone didn't answer, and she knew he would have told her to stop being such a dunderhead, so she kissed the stone and moved away into the forest, which she had yet to explore. Perhaps she should have taken Sirius with her, but he was at Remus's grave with Teddy and Andromeda and she didn't want to disturb him. She would take him to James and Lily's graves in Godric's Hollow soon, since Harry had gotten a place there, but she had the urge to walk in the forest. It was the only part of Hogwarts, she realized, that she hadn't really seen.

Of course, when her eyes caught a small glint in the underbrush, her excuses for walking through the forest were forgotten, leaning down to pick up what she hoped was what she thought it was.

Sure enough, a small black stone was there with what she could tell was probably the symbol of the Deathly Hallows where Albus had cracked it with the sword of Gryffindor. She sighed, struggling with her conscious only a moment before turning it over thrice in the palm of her hand, eyes closed tightly in case it didn't work for some reason.

She did open them, though, and felt tears welling up in her eyes as she saw them in front of her. Remus, Tonks, Severus, Fred, all standing before her and smiling. Even Severus was smiling at her as she sobbed.

"I'm so sorry," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry that I couldn't save you, any of you."

"You saved the person you needed most," Fred said softly. "You couldn't have lived without Sirius, not happily. That was the most you could do. You're human, Morrighan."

He was right, she was human. So why did she still feel like she'd failed?

"You prepared me for my fate more than Albus ever did," Severus said softly. "You didn't have to say anything, but the thought that you were safe and your children were safe and you would stay safe because of my death were my last comforting thought before dying."

"I'm so sorry I couldn't-"

"You misunderstand, Morrighan," Remus told her carefully. "Your purpose wasn't to stop the dying. You are not a god. Everyone dies, and everyone is meant to die at some point. You helped ease the pain, though."

"But Sirius," Morrighan sobbed. "I saved Sirius."

"Sirius is different," Fred said gently. "You and Sirius have intertwined souls, Morrighan. You needed him to survive in this world. He was what was holding you here. He needed you, and so you came. And then when you needed him, you were able to keep him alive. You see?"

Yes, it was becoming clear to her. Sirius and Morrighan, souls so tangled together that to tear them apart when they needed each other would be a cruelty of the universe.

"But what about you and George?" she asked of Fred, her heart sinking at the realization. "You two were part of each other."

"George has others to help him," Fred said, smiling sadly. "He's got family and friends. You have nothing else except for Sirius, especially at the time when he would have died. You know that."

And although she still felt guilty, although dozens of arguments were building up inside of her even as Fred and Severus and Remus were telling her that she had done the right thing, Morrighan knew that Fred was right. She needed Sirius, and she couldn't imagine life without him. She wouldn't have been able to survive, and from the sound of things if it hadn't been for Sirius, she wouldn't have even left her own world.

"I really shouldn't have come here," she whispered, looking down at the stone in her hand. "Harry intended for the Stone to stay hidden forever, and it was the right thing. But now I know where it is. That temptation will haunt me forever."

Especially when the time came for Sirius to die, if he was taken before her. What would she do then? Should she take the Stone with her, just in case?

"It will drive you mad, Morrighan," Remus said gently. "You know you need to rid yourself of it, rid everyone of it."

"I don't have the skill to unmake this," Morrighan argued, knowing she was justifying to herself. "Even the sword of Gryffindor with the basilisk venom didn't destroy it and its properties."

"You don't have to destroy it," Tonks said. "You just have to lose it again. Close your eyes, spin around until you're well disoriented, and then just chuck it. It'll be gone."

Morrighan didn't like the idea of it very much, but she knew it was the right thing to do, so she nodded, whispered one last goodbye, and did exactly as Tonks had instructed her, feeling the Stone slip from her grasp and fly into the forest undergrowth.

She steadied herself as she opened her eyes, grasping the nearest tree trunk and trying not to sick up. She had no idea where the Stone went, and as she realized this she also decided, reluctantly, that it was for the better. Once she'd found her legs again, Morrighan trudged out of the forest to find Sirius, who was still sitting at Remus's grave, although Andromeda had gone home, leaving him with Teddy.

"Hey," he said, kissing her forehead as she sat down beside him, taking Teddy onto her lap. "Where did you disappear to?"

"Just checking out the forest," she said casually, not really lying. "I'd not seen it before, and I've missed trees. There were lots of trees back home, you know, growing up."

He blinked as though being reminded of something he'd forgotten. Had he really so easily forgotten that she wasn't from his reality?

"We'll plant dozens of trees when we move back into the manor," he promised her. "I'm moving things in this week, anything we might need, and then I'm having Grimmauld Place condemned. Without Kreacher, there's no one who really wants that place. It's better if we just blow the thing up or something."

"Sounds perfect," Morrighan sighed. "And then maybe we can get started on that baby you wanted."

Sirius blinked.

"Really?" he said happily. "We're going to have another?"

"Cool down," she hissed. "I'm not pregnant yet, there's no need to announce it to the world. I'm just saying we can start trying for more once we're settled in Black Manor again."

He grinned, kissing her eagerly, although chaste enough that no one was going to raise eyebrows at it being done so publically.

"Forget about the week," he moaned against her mouth. "I'm getting it all taken care of tomorrow. Can you handle the kids for-?"

"Yes," Morrighan said, and she began to laugh.

She had forgotten how good it felt to laugh, and she began to laugh so hard that she fell back onto the grass, Teddy looking down at her curiously as he sat on her lap. Sirius leaned over her and smiled down at her as tears ran down her face and she cried of happiness for the first time in her life, crying tears of laughter.

"All right?" he asked when she sat up again, wiping her face and kissing Teddy on top of his bright-green head.

"I think I'm better than ever," Morrighan told him with a smile as he scooped Teddy up, then helped her to her feet.

They took their leave of Hogwarts that night, the castle nearly finished with reconstruction, the dead honored, and everything seeming to be on the track back to normalcy, or something like it. They wouldn't return to Hogwarts again for more than a dozen years, and somehow that was perfectly fine with everyone.

**A/N: THIS IS NOT THE END! There is an epilogue, but I just wanted to thank you all for following me on this long and wonderful journey! I hope you check out some of my other work so the journey continues! :D**

** -C**


	37. Epilogue

Morrighan Capilla Black had only been known as Morrighan Black after the war in 1998, thirty years ago. She was fifty-one years old, and her youngest child was finishing his last year of Hogwarts. Her husband was nearly seventy, but in spite of his years in Azkaban they hardly looked at all different in age, the wizarding blood slowing his physical aging considerably once Sirius hit fifty.

She sat in her chair, anxiously awaiting the calling of names, certifying who was graduating. This was their sixteenth child to graduate Hogwarts, and Harry's youngest, who had come in the same year as Sirius and Morrighan's youngest, had graduated the year before.

First had been their triplets. Nicole still went by Nikki, had been a Ravenclaw of average talent, although more than average praise due to her parents being hailed as war heroes despite having been in hiding for most of the war. Despite Nikki's complete lack of Quidditch skill, she was shrewd and a fierce fan, had started her career in the Department of Magical Games and Sports and saved enough, along with a loan from her over-generous but admittedly filthy rich father, to buy a Quidditch team. She was the proud owner of Pride of Portree, not that they ever won the league.

Catherine still went by Kitty, and was still absolutely spoiled rotten by her father. She'd been a Gryffindor, just as they had expected, and had been a force of nature both academically and on the Quidditch pitch, playing Keeper for six years. She'd been a prefect, and Head Girl, which didn't help her father's ego about her. She was sitting up at the head table, actually, having taken the Transfiguration post when Professor McGonagall had retired, which had been awkward at first for her younger siblings, but she showed no favoritism, or at least, far less than many of the other teachers did.

Tiffany had been in Ravenclaw with Nikki, and had been much more of an academic force, when it was a subject she cared about. She'd scraped four N.E.W.T.s, but all with exceeding good scores. She'd been a prefect as well, and after several years working for the Department for International Magical Cooperation, she became the professor of Ancient Runes at Hogwarts, and was sitting right next to Kitty at the head table.

The twins were next, along with Teddy Lupin.

Alisa continued to go by Allie, and although their first Hufflepuff had been very good in Potions and Transfiguration, she'd chucked it all in right out of school to become a musician. Her twin, Haydée Estella, had been a Ravenclaw prefect, and Head Girl, and although she'd done very well in her O.W.L.s, she more or less shirked off her N.E.W.T.s, only managing to get an Astronomy N.E.W.T., although she became an author, so that didn't really matter.

Teddy had been in Hufflepuff with Allie, and he'd been just as smart as his father and just as troublesome as his mother. He'd married Victoire Weasley as soon as she was done with school, and he worked for the Ministry on werewolf rights issues.

A year after the war they'd had Rebecca Riika, who they called Bekki. She'd been a Ravenclaw, a Seeker and the captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, and she'd gone straight onto Puddlemere United out of school, which had led to tense conversations at holiday dinners between Bekki and Nikki.

A couple of years later they'd had another set of triplets, which Sirius had been a bit more thrilled about than Morrighan had. Nataliya Page went by Natasha. She'd been a Hufflepuff, a Chaser, and an Arithmancy prodigy. She spent hours poring over numbers and writing articles on brilliant new theories, but she'd turned down a dozen different authors for teaching jobs. Ilithyia Blodwen had resisted all attempts at nicknames, and had ended up in Hufflepuff with her sister. She'd been a prefect, and Head Girl, and she went on to become an author like Haydée, and they'd even co-authored some highly-acclaimed works. Laura Andromeda had also been a Hufflepuff, like her sisters, and she'd played Keeper on the House team. Very similar to Natasha, Laura stuck her nose in the world of academia firmly, but for her it was Herbology. She wasn't as successful as her sister, but she worked just as hard and got adequate results.

Three years later they had another set of triplets, which was very nearly where Morrighan drew the line. They were such easy children, though, that Morrighan decided that what would a few more after them hurt? Giuliana Benigna went as Liana. She'd been a Hufflepuff, prefect, Head Girl, Chaser, and all-around golden child, and then she went into a career as a stand-up comedian, which she was surprisingly successful at. Catriona Patience went by Cat, and was Sirius's second coming of Kitty, almost spoiled beyond all reason. She was a Ravenclaw, prefect, and she worked at the Floo Network Office, and she was always bending rules for her siblings, but her superiors didn't seem to mind. And Piety Lucia was a Gryffindor, Beater, Quidditch captain, prefect, and had had several jobs. She'd started at the Goblin Liaison Office, moved into the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, was grandfathered into the Department of Magical Games and Sports by Nikki's recommendation, and had finally settled on being a sports journalist because she was absolutely sick of the Ministry.

Another set of twins came three years later. Kori Gabriela was a Ravenclaw, and worked in the field of Arithmancy, which Natasha had helped her into, although she was finally thriving on her own right. Her twin, Ivory Iris had also been a Ravenclaw, although she'd been a prefect, Head Girl, and she'd moved from Department of Magical Games and Sports to Department of Magical Transportation and then had pulled out of the Ministry to invent her own Astronomy tools, which she was doing very well with.

Pippin, though, Pippin had been a challenge.

When Pippin Sirius Black had been born, Morrighan and Sirius and everyone all agreed that it was time for the Blacks to stop having kids. Morrighan had had a vision about having a son, and she'd known he would be a handful. Pippin had been sorted into Hufflepuff, he'd been a terrible student with only two O.W.L.s, which weren't the ones he wanted, and he had to take his O.W.L. year again. Despite that, he'd scraped two N.E.W.T.s and all the while maintained his captaincy of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, which he was a Beater on. When he couldn't get that Transfiguration N.E.W.T., though, he'd told his mother he'd gotten a back-up plan, because there was no way he would pass.

He was going to be a comedian with Liana.

Still, Morrighan and Sirius sat, watching proudly as their youngest child's name was called and he officially graduated from Hogwarts.

"Morrighan! Sirius!"

It was Neville Longbottom, Professor of Herbology and Deputy Headmaster. They'd grown close over the years, despite the fact that their children had mostly been in Hufflepuff.

"Neville," Morrighan said with a smile. "It's good to see you! Well, that's the last Black for a while until Pippin goes and gets me grandchildren. The girls will have new last names, anyway."

"Tiffany's becoming Head of Ravenclaw House next year, did she tell you?"

Sirius and Morrighan exchanged a surprised look.

"No, she didn't say a thing," Sirius said. "Is Flitwick finally retiring?"

"Oh, yeah, his health is failing, but he's actually taking over as Headmaster again," Neville shrugged. "He figures that if he quits teaching and focuses on running the school and his health then he should be fine, but he wants Tiffany to take his place in Ravenclaw Tower. Got any kids to teach Charms?"

They all laughed.

It was good to be back at Hogwarts, Morrighan decided, however short of a time she was there.

It was strange to think that a little over thirty years had passed since she came into this reality, met Sirius for the first time, topless no less. Her children hadn't known her complicated existence. There was really no point in trying to explain it to them. Harry had protected her files from being examined at every turn, making sure that the secret of her strange appearance stayed safe.

"You're here," Harry had said. "You're here and you've done so much for all of us, and you've got a life and a family, and what does it matter if you got here differently than normal?"

Morrighan never told a soul about her discussion with the dead, never told Sirius that he was the reason she was pulled into his reality, because Harry was right, what did any of it matter? She knew the truth, the details, and that was all that she needed for the happiness she had.

Morrighan Corrine Capilla Black raised sixteen children, aided the end of a war, and even went to work in the Department of Mysteries after the war. It was a short lived career and she never found the answers she was looking for, but she decided it didn't matter. Some questions were better left with a bit of mystery.


End file.
